The FBI Boston Division has arrested two New England women who entered the U.S. Capitol during the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021.
Special agents arrested 33-year-old Kirstyn Niemela of Hudson, New Hampshire, and 36-year-old Stefanie Chiguer of Dracut, Massachusetts, the FBI said Tuesday.
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Both women face the same four charges: Entering and remaining in a restricted building; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
The FBI Boston Division says it has now charged 13 people in connection with the Capitol riots, in which a mob of protesters sought to stop the transfer of power from former President Donald Trump to President Joe Biden.
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The bureau first received a tip about Niemela's involvement on the day after the insurrection, according to a criminal complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. That tip cited her Facebook activity.
One week after the riots, someone who had previously been friends with Niemela, reported to the FBI that she had said she was "going to take back the country." That former friend had distanced themselves from Niemela over her rhetoric, according to the complaint.
"NIEMELA told [the witness] she was in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021 and she showed them a video of her breaking a window in the Capitol building. She also mentioned to them that she was a member of the Proud Boys," the complaint read.
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The witness told the FBI Niemela was at the Capitol with her girlfriend, "Stefanie," whom the witness had only met a couple of times and knew to be from Dracut. After showing photos to the witness, the FBI identified her as Chiguer.
In one photo provided in the court paperwork, the two New England women are seen posing with Michael Eckerman, a Kansas man who was adorned in body armor that day and has been indicted after allegedly pushing a Capitol Police officer as protesters forced their way into the building.
No attorney information for Niemela or Chiguer was immediately available.
