According to court documents, Tanios brought bear spray to the Capitol that day, which his co-defendant, Julian Hutter, used to attack a number of officers, including Siknik.
The Washington, D.C., chief medical examiner found that Sicknick suffered multiple strokes and died of natural causes on January 7, 2021. The medical examiner, Francisco Diaz, told the Washington Post at the time that the attack on the Capitol and “everything that happened played a role in his condition”.
In a video recorded that day and subpoenaed by the government, Khater can be heard saying, “Give me that bear s**t.” “Wait, wait, not yet, not yet … it’s still early,” Tanios said, before Hatter approached a line of officers, including Siknik, with the spray, court documents say. Khater’s lawyers argued that he only attacked officers after being sprayed. Tanios and Hatter were initially charged with 10 counts, including conspiracy to obstruct or injure officers and assaulting officers with a dangerous weapon. During Wednesday’s hearing, prosecutors said they offered Hatter a plea deal, which would have required him to plead guilty to two counts of assaulting police with a dangerous weapon.
If accepted, Khater’s sentencing guidelines would range from 78 to 97 months, one of the highest terms a Capitol rioter has faced who pleaded guilty. The case has garnered political attention in recent months, particularly in public hearings held by the House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack.
When Caroline Edwards, a US Capitol police officer who was attacked with chemical spray along with Sicknick, testified to the commission, she recalled the moment she saw Sicknick holding his head in his hands after being sprayed.
“It was ghost pale, which I realized at that point had been sprayed and I was concerned,” she told the committee in June. “My police alarm bell went off because if they pepper spray you, you turn red. It turned almost as pale as that sheet of paper.”
Sicknick’s family was also present at the hearing that night.
During Thursday’s hearing, Rep. Elaine Luria described a Jan. 9, 2021, conversation about Sicknick’s death and former President Donald Trump’s days-long silence on the matter between two top Trump campaign officials. “Also, too bad he didn’t own up to the death of the Capitol Police officer,” Tim Murtaugh, Trump’s former communications director, texted Matthew Wolking, one of Murtaugh’s deputies.
Walking fired back, saying he was furious and that everything Trump said in support of law enforcement “was a lie.” “You know what it is, of course, if he recognized the dead cop, he would implicitly blame the mob. And he won’t do that because it’s his people,” Murtaugh replied, adding if Trump acknowledged Sicknick’s death. , could imply acceptance that “what ignited at the rally got out of hand.”
CNN’s Hannah Rabinowitz contributed to this report.