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Date: 12/5/2023
AMHERST — The FBI field office in Boston announced that an Amherst man became the 32nd resident from their investigative coverage area, which includes Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, to face criminal penalties related to the Jan. 6, 2021 breach on the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
Agents said Daniel Tocci was taken into custody in Amherst on Nov .29 in connection to his presence and alleged actions at the U.S. Capitol nearly three years ago when crowds stormed the Capitol building and grounds in an effort to disrupt the certification of the 2020 Presidential election.
A warrant issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia outlined multiple counts Tocci faces including:
Still images derived from video footage obtained by FBI officials from the day of the Capitol attack appear to follow Tocci among the crowds on the grounds and inside the building itself. In the accompanying statement of facts contained within the charging document, Tocci is identified through images as first being observed near the Washington Monument shortly before 2 p.m. where he seen to be carrying a large stick and making his way through groups of people.
In a span of approximately 35 minutes, Tocci is captured again on video at the Capitol building accessing stairs into restricted areas. Through further imagery, Tocci is described as being seen assisting “other rioters scale the outer wall of the northwest staircase.”
The report further indicates that “Tocci, and fellow rioters reached the Capitol’s Upper West Terrace. Here, Tocci joined along with the crowd and chanted on at least one occasion ‘Our House.’”
Documentation accompanied by images appears to show Tocci inside the building itself near a door he was observed entering as well as outside the structure where he is seen reaching into a broken window, breaking off and removing a portion of shutter from the window.
The charging document estimates Tocci remained within restricted areas of the Capitol on that day for at least 90 minutes.
FBI officials said they received cooperation from the Amherst and Hadley police departments including video from a January 2023 traffic stop in Hadley which aided in the identification of Tocci.