FBI arrests Topeka man on charges from Jan. 6 D.C. riot

William Pope (AP & Courtesy Photos/Shawnee County Department of Corrections)

Posted: Feb 12, 2021 / 01:08 PM CST

Updated: Feb 12, 2021 / 04:37 PM CST

TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) – Special agents arrested a Topeka man Friday on charges stemming from the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot.

#BREAKING: This morning, FBI Special Agents, members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and officers with @Topeka_Police arrested William Pope of Topeka pursuant to an arrest warrant related to violence on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. @FBIWFO @USAO_DC @USAO_Kansas
— FBI Kansas City (@FBIKansasCity) February 12, 2021

According to the FBI, William Pope faces charges including:

Obstruction or impeding any official proceeding
Civil disorder
Entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds
Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds
Disorderly conduct in a Capitol building
Impeding passage through the Capitol grounds of buildings
Parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building

Pope, a former Topeka City Council candidate from the 2019 District 2 seat race, is the third Kansas man taken into custody by the FBI, with two from Olathe arrested Thursday. The bureau said special agents in Idaho also arrested Pope’s brother, Michael Pope, on the same charges from the riot.

A spokesperson for Kansas State University also confirmed Pope is a graduate teaching assistant at the school.

Click here to view the full list of FBI arrests and charges stemming from the Capitol Breach case.