Jan 6 defendant opens fire on police in Texas
‘A deputy instructed Pelham to put his gun down, but he continued to wave it until re-entering his home’
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A Texas man facing charges over the 6 January Capitol insurrection opened fire on police officers last week when they arrived at his house for a welfare check ahead of his scheduled surrender.
Nathan Donald Pelham, 40, who is charged with misdemeanors for entering the Capitol building and disorderly conduct, now also faces charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to court documents.
The incident took place on 12 April, Politico reported.
According to court filings, an FBI special agent had called Pelham on 12 April and asked him to surrender in a few days. That evening, Pelham's father called law enforcement to inform them that his son had a gun and was threatening to kill himself.
When the deputies arrived for a welfare check they found the house dark and lit it with lights from their patrol car.
Shortly after, Pelham's daughter left the house and was taken into a police car, before officers heard gunshots and took cover.
About an hour later, Pelham, who is a convicted felon, walked onto the porch and "fired towards several deputies".
A deputy said one "gunshot came in so close proximity to myself that I could hear the distinct whistling sound as the bullet traveled by me and then strike a metal object to my right side."
"A deputy instructed Pelham to put his gun down, but he continued to wave it until re-entering his home," prosecutors said.
The standoff ended shortly after midnight when authorities left without arresting Pelham. A subsequent search of Pelham’s home revealed a "Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol and four boxes of ammunition, as well as several 9mm sized holes in the walls".
A day prior to the incident, Pelham had been charged with four counts of misdemeanor for allegedly storming the Capitol.
Pelham was later arrested on Tuesday.
He faces up to 15 years in federal prison on the felony gun charge and three years on the misdemeanor charges.
According to court documents, Pelham had waived a detention hearing and a federal magistrate judge ordered him detained. He allegedly appeared in at least one photo from the riot donning a hat with a logo associated with the Proud Boys.