BUFFALO, N.Y. — Friday night 2 On Your Side learned of another Western New Yorker arrested in connection with the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Thomas Sibick is facing disorderly conduct, assault and other charges filed in Washington related to the riot that has resulted in several arrests of New York residents, including many who bragged about their exploits on social media.
According to court documents, Sibick was seen on body camera footage ripping the badge and radio from a D.C. police officer's vest when he had been pulled into a crowd.
The affidavit indicates the defendant spoke with the FBI multiple times prior to the arrest.
Sibick allegedly admitted he was part of a mob that confronted the officer. He claimed to have grabbed the officer’s law enforcement gear as a way to protect him, the complaint said.
Investigators say Sibick buried the badge in his backyard here in Buffalo and eventually turned it over to authorities. You can find a full breakdown of the affidavit here.
Attorney Paul Cambria, who's not connected to this case, told 2 On Your Side pictures and videos, both the body camera footage and allegedly the defendant's own social media, will likely play a significant role as the case unfolds.
"We see that more and more, text messages, cell phones, play into criminal cases more and more each day and clearly that's going to be a factor here," he explained.
Court documents indicate Sibick was taken into custody and later released to home incarceration at his father’s house after his appearance in federal court.
His next federal court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday.
"The next thing will be either his lawyers will plea bargain if they think there's overwhelming evidence, video evidence, etc., some of which we've seen. They may try to make the best of a bad situation and plea bargain," Cambria said.
"If there's a defense and, apparently, at some point in time, he indicated that he was trying to assist the officer, and if they want to use that defense, then a trial is the other alternative."
Cambria told 2 On Your Side that, if convicted, the penalty could be substantial.
"Judges may want to send a message here. Judges may want to make an example and severely punish someone for basically invading the Capitol Building and assaulting or stealing things from an officer so this could definitely involve jail time. Real jail time," said Cambria.