Seattle PD Suspends Two Officers, Investigates Whether They Stormed Capitol

The Seattle Police Department suspended two officers Friday who may have attended the Washington, D.C., rally Wednesday while officials investigate whether the pair participated in storming the U.S. Capitol.

Two Seattle Police Department (SPD) police officers reportedly attended the “Save America” rally where President Donald Trump spoke before a mob stormed the Capitol building, the SPD said in a statement Friday night. The department said it supports the officers’ First Amendment rights, but that it had suspended them while the department investigates whether the two had broken the law.

“The Department fully supports all lawful expressions of First Amendment freedom of speech, but the violent mob and events that unfolded at the U.S. Capitol were unlawful and resulted in the death of another police officer,” SPD Chief Adrian Diaz said.

“If any SPD officers were directly involved in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, I will immediately terminate them,” Diaz said.

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Five people, including a police officer bludgeoned by a fire extinguisher and a woman shot in the neck by an officer, died during the course of the riot, Washington D.C. police said. Police added that they arrested dozens of people and several others were injured.

The crowd of apparent President Donald Trump supporters breached the Capitol after Trump’s speech in which he claimed the November election was rigged and stolen.

Since Wednesday, the FBI and Department of Justice have announced several additional arrests of individuals who were captured on video and in photos storming the Capitol.