JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — New documents obtained by First Coast News paint a picture of the events that investigators say led to charges for a Nassau County man in connection to the January Capitol riot.
Jeffrey Register, 38, of Nassau County, made his initial court appearance in Jacksonville Tuesday.
He faces three federal charges for his alleged role in the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, including two counts of knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct.
According to a criminal complaint, Register was placed at the Capitol using GPS data. Additionally, a Youtube video possibly depicting Register was found where a cross identification was performed against his driver's license photo.
Authorities say a positive identification was able to be made based on the physical attributes of the man in the video and the I.D comparison.
The complaint alleges that Register can be seen in the video wearing a sweatshirt, the back of which featured an American flag and lettering stating: “God, Guns & Trump.”
Under the inner black hooded sweatshirt’s hood, he wore a black skullcap with lettering stating “2020 Keep America Great.”
In the video, the complaint alleges that Register is first seen outside of the Capitol building and then approaches a broken window where people are attempting to enter and exit the Capitol building. He is later reportedly seen in the video inside the building, near an entrance.
In the video, the complaint alleges that several U.S. Capitol Police officers can be heard instructing other individuals to leave the Capitol building and Register ignores these statements.
On February 24, the document says an interview with Register took at his place of employment in Jacksonville. After initially denying entering the Capitol building, Register reportedly admitted to having entered.
He then admitted to authorities that he deleted photographs from his phone and claimed to have “factory reset” his cellphone, the document says.
The complaint alleges Register told authorities that his goal in entering the Capitol building was "to affect Congress’s decision on that certification vote" and that he wished he had been able to enter the House chamber during the certification process to show his support for President Trump.
During Tuesday's hearing in Jacksonville, the prosecution said Register admitted to the FBI that he went to the Capitol to disrupt the government. However, the defense argued the statement was not accurate and responded that Register had only admitted to being in Washington on Jan. 6.
In all, he faces up to 30 months behind bars and fines up to $205,000 if he is found guilty.
Register will appear before a court in Washington on Friday at 1 p.m. via Zoom.