Queens Man Pushed Cop Off Ledge During Jan. 6 Insurrection: Feds

NEW YORK CITY — A trail of photographs — from a sea turtle conservation fundraiser to the U.S. Capitol's steps — brought authorities to a Broad Channel man they say attacked police during the Jan. 6 insurrection.

FBI agents arrested Ralph Joseph Celentano III, 54, on Wednesday as part of a massive ongoing probe into the pro-Trump riot.

Celentano joined more than a dozen other New York City dwellers accused of illegally entering the Capitol or its grounds on Jan. 6, 2021. But Celentano's case also involves what authorities deemed assaults on Capitol police officers.

Video and stills provided in federal court documents show a man — Celentano, according to the FBI — approach "Officer K.E." from behind. The officer told investigators he was "blind-sided" by a "football-type tackle" that caused him to fall over a ledge into a crowd.

"Officer K.E., an Iraq war veteran, recalled thinking 'I didn't survive a war to go out like this,'" court documents state.

Investigators linked Celentano to the attack on the police officer thanks to scores of open-source video and surveillance images from the insurrection.

Footage showed a man with longer hair, a two-toned jacket and a folding chair on his back, court documents state. Those images were circulated online in "Be On the Lookout" posts, which ultimately brought attention to Celentano.

An Instagram photograph showed Celentano at a 2018 fundraiser for The Jenny Albert Sea Turtle Foundation in Broad Channel, court documents state. Witnesses, including a foundation volunteer, helped identify Celentano as the man seen in the U.S. Capitol insurrection, according to documents.

Other footage showed Celentano engaged in "several physical altercations" with other uniformed law enforcement officers, documents state. Images provided in court documents show a man matching Celentano's description being held by a crowd of police and facing off an officer with a riot shield.

The insurrection stemmed from former President Donald Trump's unfounded assertion that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him. His supporters that day rallied in Washington, D.C., and marched to the Capitol, where Congress was poised to certify Joe Biden's win.

But the crowd turned violent and stormed the Capitol — the most significant largest breach since the War of 1812.

Celentano and most other accused rioters face a litany of charges related to the riot.

A Texas man — Guy Wesley Reffitt — this week became the first rioter to be found guilty on charges connected to the Jan. 6 attack, the New York Times reported.