Credit: FBI/Court papers
The wife of a Northampton Township man inadvertently helped the FBI develop a case against her husband, who federal authorities said was among those who entered the breached U.S. Capitol on January 6.
In court papers made public Wednesday morning, authorities said Gary Edwards, 68, of Northampton Township’s Churchville section, was among the crowd inside the Capitol during the insurrection.
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The FBI received a tip in early February that Edwards was among those in the Capitol during the attack. Lynn Feiler Edwards, the defendant’s wife, was discovered to have made posts about the incident. The post were captured and submitted to law enforcement, according to an FBI affidavit.
“Okay ladies let me tell you what happened as my husband was there inside the Capitol Rotunda. There was a small group of young men dressed in military garb who yelled ‘we r going in!’ They broke the barricade down, ran up the steps, broke a window and climbed in. They broke some furniture. Then proceeded to storm the floors. The crowd followed to stand on the balconies,” she allegedly wrote.
The woman reportedly stated her husband walked right into the Capitol and even chatted with police after teargas was fired. She defended the attack by noting people were upset over the outcome of the 2020 election, according to federal authorities.
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Edwards’ wife removed the posts at some point, but the FBI discovered video that appeared to show Edwards inside a Capitol office, court papers stated.
An Instagram post from a photographer showed Edwards on a cell phone at the Capitol and surveillance video also showed him in the building, the FBI said.
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Edwards was arrested Tuesday on charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disruption of official business, violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building, according to the U.S Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
The 68-year-old man made an initial court appearance and was released awaiting his next court date.
Law enforcement sources have previously told LevittownNow.com FBI special agents have made several visits in Bucks County speaking to people who were in Washington D.C. on the day of the insurrection that left dozens of police officers injured and left an attacker dead after she was shot by a U.S. Capitol officer.
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Two Levittown-area residents have been charged in connection with January 6. A former Levittown woman and another from the upper end of the county have also been charged.
As of Tuesday, five Bucks Countians have been charged in connection with the Capitol riots. The county is among the top in the country for highest number of residents charged in connection with January 6.
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Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.
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