Former South FL GOP Leader Charged In U.S. Capitol Riot: Report

PALM BEACH, FL — A former candidate for the Palm Beach County Commission and South Florida GOP activist has been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot.

Jody Tagaris, 67, faces four federal misdemeanor charges: entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct, entering and remaining in certain rooms in the Capitol building, and disorderly conduct in the Capitol building.

The FBI received an anonymous tip about Tagaris, including a picture of her at the Capitol taken from her Facebook page, Jan. 14, 12 News reported.

In the picture, she wears a Make America Great Again hat, an American flag scarf, a U.S. Olympics American flag jacket and a mask and is posed in a frame of a broken window next to the Senate wing door at the Capitol, reports said. She was identified in the image by a coworker.

Through a search warrant, the FBI received access to Tagaris’ Facebook account and found additional photos of her, unmasked, in the same clothing items, WFLX reported.

When reviewing surveillance and police body camera footage, agents identified Tagaris, the Palm Beach Post reported. She was seen in the Senate lobby taking pictures and engaging with Capitol police, as well as entering a room near the Senate chamber and sitting at a conference table, reports said. There is also footage of her outside the building after the rioters were ordered to evacuate.

Investigators also found her phone number listed on her Facebook account and confirmed it was hers. Another search warrant placed her cell phone in locations near the Capitol Jan. 6, reports said.

Tagaris ran for the Palm Beach County Commission seat in 2002.