At least six people from New Jersey who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots are now suing the Department of Justice, according to several lawsuits.
Scott Fairlamb, Michael Oliveras, Rasha Abual-Ragheb, Roberta Minuta, as well as Keith and Richard Andrews, are among several plaintiffs in three federal lawsuits claiming they were mistreated by the justice system following Jan. 6 arrests and prosecutions.
On Jan. 6, 2021, more than 2,000 people violently entered the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. after Donald Trump called on them to support him in denying the results of the 2020 election. In a matter of hours, five people died, hundreds were injured, and an estimated $2.7 million in damage was done to the nation's Capitol.
Years later, after Donald Trump was sworn into his second term as President, he granted clemency to all of the Jan. 6 rioters, including those convicted of violent crimes, and 46 from New Jersey.
Now, dozens of rioters, some with Garden State ties, are suing the Department of Justice, with many claiming they were mistreated in court and while incarcerated.
Scott Fairlamb
Fairlamb, an MMA fighter and gym owner from Sussex County, made headlines in the weeks following the riots after he punched a Capitol Police Officer in the face, an attack that was caught on video and went viral.
The QAnon subscriber, who has a history of violence, was arrested on Jan. 22, 2021 and slapped with several charges, including the assault of a federal officer. He initially denied the charge in April that year, but pleaded guilty to the charge in August. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison.
More: Morris Co. 'Proud Boy' Bragged About Role In Capitol Riot: DOJ
Fairlamb had already completed his prison sentence by the time Trump pardoned him in January 2025.
Now, he is suing the Department of Justice, claiming he was mistreated while incarcerated. The suit specifically names five US officials, as well as 25 people identified only as "other federal officials and employees."
Fairlamb is the sole plaintiff in his suit, unlike the others, which have dozens.
Specifically, he claims prison officials illegally changed his leukemia medication, denied him a halfway-house transfer, and subjected him to harsh pretrial detention conditions, including days without showers or haircuts.
He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, along with legal fees and other relief. The lawsuit does not specify a dollar amount.
Michael Oliveras
Oliveras, who now lives in Pennsylvania but was a New Jersey resident at the time of the riot, was initially charged with four misdemeanors in December 2021, according to the lawsuit.
After pleading not guilty and refusing several plea deals, he was slapped with felony assault charges for physically resisting advancing police lines during the event, which he adamantly denied. He was found guilty on the assault charge by a jury in 2023 and sentenced to five years in prison.
Oliveras claims the additional felony charge was "bogus" and retaliatory in nature.
Additionally, he says the Department of Justice unlawfully took his phone and deleted several videos. Oliveras also claims he had his nose broken in jail and did not receive adequate treatment for a deviated septum.
He received a full presidential pardon in January 2025, cutting short his five-year prison sentence.
Rasha Abual-Ragheb
Abual-Ragheb is an immigrant from Lebanon who became a U.S. citizen and resided in Fairfield during the riots.
She was accused of entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, for two minutes, according to the lawsuit.
The suit says that on Jan. 19, 2021, roughly 30 federal agents swarmed her home and arrested her for four misdemeanor charges. Among the officers were immigration agents, despite her legal status, and social service officials, who planned to take her children if she were to be deported, the suit adds.
After prosecutors discovered she had interacted with a Facebook group called the New Jersey chapter of the American Patriot 3%, they associated her with the right-wing extremist group, the Three Percenters, according to the suit.
Abual-Ragheb's lawyer at the time warned her that prosecutors might pursue a felony obstruction of justice charge if she did not plead guilty to the misdemeanors, the suit says. The stress of the charges caused her severe stress, leading to depression and suicide attempts, it continues.
Eventually, Abual-Ragheb pleaded guilty to the four misdemeanors. She was sentenced to 60 days of house arrest and three years' probation. Trump pardoned her in 2025.
Related: NJ Mom Charged In Jan. 6 Capitol Riot Spared Prison
She claims that the federal prosecutors' threats of felony charges were meant to coerce her into pleading guilty to the misdemeanors. She also says she continues to have physical and mental health issues due to the stress of the court proceedings.
Roberto A. Minuta
Minuta, who the suit says was a member of the far-right, anti-government militia group The Oath Keepers at the time of the Jan. 6 riots, was supposedly providing security at the gathering. Now a Texas resident, he lived in Hackensack during the riots.
More: NJ 'Oath Keeper' In Jan. 6 Capitol Riot Faces New Charges
The suit says he was, while armed with bear spray and wearing body armor, attempting to evacuate the Capitol Police from the building after the violence erupted.
For the following weeks after the riots, the suit says Minuta was being monitored by the FBI. It adds that an undercover FBI agent came into his tattoo business, got a tattoo, and talked about Jan. 6 for hours without identifying himself as a federal official.
After being arrested and charged, he was slapped with several additional felonies after he told the court he planned to defend himself, according to the suit. Prosecutors filed six superseding indictments, eventually charging Minuta with seditious conspiracy and five other felonies.
"At trial, prosecutors hid exculpatory evidence on a large scale, including evidence that proved Mr. Minuta was acting in a protective role for law enforcement," the complaint reads.
He was eventually convicted of "several bogus charges" and sentenced to 54 months imprisonment plus 6 months house arrest, the complaint says. His sentence was also commuted following Trump's Day 1 pardons.
Minuta also claims he was mistreated while incarcerated, being sexually assaulted by a corrections officer, having his mail withheld, being assaulted by a warden, and being subjected to unsanitary conditions, the suit reads.
Richard & Keith Andrews
Richard and Keith Andrews, father and son, were accused of participating in the Jan. 6 riots and slapped with varying charges. The pair claims they entered Capitol grounds when there were no barriers, restricted-area signs, police lines, announcements, or commands to stop or leave.
Keith, the owner of a long-time family-operated auto body shop in New Jersey, is specifically accused of entering the Capitol through a window along with several other protesters. He also claimed to ask a police officer where he could find a bathroom, but turned back when there was a large crowd in front of the restroom facilities.
Keith was arrested on Oct. 25, 2024, on misdemeanor charges days before the presidential election. The suit says investigators used "unconstitutional geofence warrants" and information from online investigators known as Sedition Hunters to identify him and his family.
He says that despite the charges being misdemeanors, he was subjected to a DNA swab test, a $100,000 unsecured bond (the suit doesn't specify if this was ever posted), drug screenings, and the forfeiture of his guns and passport.
Keith says the prosecution was detrimental to his mental and physical health, as well as his business, estimating roughly $500,000 in lost revenue.
His charges were dismissed on Jan. 22, 2025, two days after Trump's first pardon sweep.
He claims he racked up $30,000 in legal bills during the prosecution.
His father, Richard, also was charged for his involvement in the riots, but the complaint does not specify what charges.
He was arrested four days after Keith, on Oct. 29, 2024. He claims he was kept in handcuffs and shackles for 14 hours following his arrest, and was withheld food and medication.
Richard, like his son, also believes he was identified using "unconstitutional geofence warrants."
The lawsuit says Richard's case was also dismissed on Jan. 22, 2025, without a guilty plea or trial.
Richard says he spent roughly $50,000 in legal costs, with the father and son claiming to have spent a combined $80,000 during both prosecutions.
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Five of the New Jersey-tied plaintiffs — Rasha Abual-Ragheb, Michael Oliveras, Keith Andrews, Richard Andrews and Roberto Minuta — are each seeking at least $1 million each in damages from the federal government over their Jan. 6 prosecutions. A dollar amount wasn't specified in Fairlamb's suit.
Across three lawsuits, plaintiffs allege politically motivated prosecutions, coercive plea tactics, financial losses, emotional distress, mistreatment in custody, and more. They also seek legal fees and other relief.
The five plaintiffs, along with dozens from other parts of the country, are being represented by The Ticktin Law Group, based in Florida. Fairlamb is represented by Alexander Lonstein of Raiser, Kenniff & Lonstein, P.C., a New York-based law firm.
Patch has reached out to the Department of Justice for comment and has not heard back at this time.
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