SC man with white supremacist ties arrested in Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot

A South Carolina man who allegedly burst through police lines and stole a law enforcement shield has been arrested on multiple federal charges connected with the mob that stormed Congress on Jan. 6, 2021.

Tyler Bradley Dykes, 25, of Bluffton, South Carolina, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with nine crimes, including felony offenses of civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers or employees, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in the District of Columbia. He also faces misdemeanor charges.

Dykes also has “potential ties” to domestic extremist groups and had pleaded guilty for “his illegal involvement” in the 2017 white supremacist “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va., the complaint said.

News accounts of that rally said Dykes carried a Tiki torch with other white supremacists who chanted “Jews will not replace us!” Dykes was indicted earlier this year by a grand jury in Virginia on charges of burning an object at the rally to intimidate others, according to news accounts.

Dykes is the 22nd person from South Carolina arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riots that shut down Congress and forced members to flee, just as lawmakers were getting ready to begin the ceremonial counting of electoral votes that would certify Joe Biden’s victory in the November 2020 presidential election.

More than 1,000 people nationally have been arrested so far, according to the Department of Justice.

At the time of the riot, Dykes was an active duty member of the U.S. military, a complaint in his case said. However, the complaint did not specify which branch of the service Dykes was in.

However, a LinkedIn profile of Dykes said he is a former Marine and cyber security analyst. A Facebook page about his business, Technology King of the Low County, described the company as “cyber security experts” with the motto, “Firm Believers in Faith, Family, and Freedom.”

Although agents investigating the Jan. 6 riots had dozens of photographs in and outside the Capitol of a man later identified as Dykes, in all the photos the man wore a distinctive gray mask, a puffer-type jacket and a tan baseball cap. Photos of unidentified rioters were widely publicized by law enforcement seeking help in identifying them.

It was not until 11 months after the riot, in December 2021, that an anonymous informant surfaced, gave agents photographic evidence and told the FBI that Dykes was the wanted individual the FBI had labeled “#GrayGoose” in the photos.

According to the complaint, the informant told agents that Dykes had said he wore a mask during the riot and admitted he had “started beating up police officers....He was there for ‘fun’ and wanting to make a statement,” the informant said. “I believe he needs to be investigated.”

Some 140 police officers were assaulted during the attack on the Capitol, according to the Department of Justice.

Based on that and other information, agents got Dykes’ phone number and confirmed through geolocation services that Dykes and his phone was at the Capitol that day.

On the morning of the Capitol riots, Dykes had attended then-President Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally on the ellipse in back of the White House, the complaint said. At that rally, Trump and others falsely told the crowd that the Democrats had stolen the election and urged them to march on the Capitol.

According to the complaint, Dykes tore down police barriers, helped the mob push its way past police and “stole a riot shield from law enforcement and raised it over his head to establish sole possession of the item.” He then paraded around the inside of the Capitol with his stolen shield, the complaint said.

Dykes was arraigned Monday in federal court in Roanoke, Va. He is being held without bond and a hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in his case, according to court records.