Englewood ‘Oath Keeper’ Arrested For U.S. Capitol Breach: DOJ

ENGLEWOOD, FL — An Englewood man was among six people associated with the Oath Keepers organization who were arrested for forcibly entering the U.S. Capitol building during the Jan. 6 riots, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Graydon Young, 54, of Englewood was arrested Monday in Tampa. Others arrested include Kelly Meggs, 52, and Connie Meggs, 59, both of Dunnellon, on Wednesday in Ocala; Laura Steele, 52, of Thomasville, North Carolina, on Wednesday in Greensboro, North Carolina; and Sandra Ruth Parker, 62, and Bennie Alvin Parker, 70, both of Morrow, Ohio, on Thursday.

The Oath Keepers are a far-right, anti-government militia organization composed of former law enforcement and military members. Young previously served in the U.S. Army Reserve and the U.S. Navy Reserve, according to court documents.

The six were added as co-defendants to a superseding grand jury indictment for Thomas Caldwell, Donovan Crowl and Jessica Watkins. With their addition, the indictment now totals nine people.

According to the indictment, Kelly and Connie Meggs, Young, Steele, and Sandra Parker donned paramilitary gear and joined two individuals on the original indictment — Watkins and Crowl — in a military-style “stack” formation that marched up the center steps on the east side of the U.S. Capitol, breached the door at the top, and then stormed the building.

The indictment charges all nine defendants with conspiring to commit an offense against the United States, obstruction of an official proceeding, destruction of government property, entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, and tampering with documents or proceedings.

Bennie Parker has also been charged with obstruction of an investigation.

According to the superseding indictment, Kelly Meggs is the self-described leader of the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers, of which Connie Meggs, Young, and Steele also are alleged to be members.

In late December, Kelly Meggs wrote in a Facebook message, “Trump said It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! He wants us to make it WILD that’s what he’s saying. He called us all to the Capitol and wants us to make it wild!!! Sir Yes Sir!!! Gentlemen we are heading to DC pack your s---!!”

He added, “[W]e will have at least 50-100 OK there.”

According to the indictment, around the same time, Young allegedly arranged, for himself and others, firearms and combat training through a Florida company.

The indictment said that Sandra and Bennie Parker traveled with Watkins and Crowl from Ohio to Washington, D.C. In the lead-up to the attack on the U.S. Capitol, Bennie Parker communicated with Watkins about potentially joining her militia and combining forces for the Jan. 6 events.

The superseding indictment alleges that while making plans for Jan. 6, Kelly Meggs made statements that his group would not need to be armed for the attack on the U.S. Capitol, because there would be a “heavy QRF 10 Min out."

The abbreviation “QRF” means “quick reaction force,” a term used by law enforcement and the military to refer to an armed unit capable of rapidly responding to developing situations, typically to assist allied units in need of such assistance, the indictment said.

During the investigation, a college friend was among those who recognized Young while watching news coverage of unrest at the Capitol, according to the criminal complaint. The friend said that Young was tagged in other people’s Facebook posts about traveling to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 4. On Jan. 7, the day after the riot, he deleted old Facebook posts dating back to March 2019, and eventually his entire account, the friend said.

Law enforcement identified Young in a surveillance video from the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority and video footage of the riot published by the Associated Press. Investigators also recognized him in two photographs of groups of people wearing tactical gear. Some of their gear had writing on it that said things like “Oath Keepers” and “Florida,” according to the criminal complaint.

Photos from the day also show Young changing his head gear from a wide-brim military-style hat outside the Capitol to a black tactical helmet inside the building, the criminal complaint said.

Facebook records show that Young posted “We stormed and got inside” to his account the evening of Jan. 6. Phone records also that he was inside the building at the time of the attack.