Capitol riot suspect is turned in to the FBI by his ex-girlfriend

Man known to online sleuths as ‘Texas pleather’ was eventually identified by his ex-girlfriend

A Texas man was arrested after his now ex-girlfriend identified him to the FBI as allegedly being at the US Capitol on 6 January.

Geoffrey Shough, 37, is facing civil disorder charges for allegedly joining the crowd of rioters that overwhelmed police officers and forcibly entered the US Capitol building.

Shough was captured on video waving a Texas flag and wearing a jacket over what appeared to be a body armour vest, along with a ballistic-style helmet, goggles and hard-knuckle gloves, according to the Department of Justice.

Despite allegedly being one of the first to enter the US Capitol building, his identity remained unknown until his girlfriend and anonymous tipsters helped identify him to federal agents.

According to the FBI’s statement of facts submitted with the criminal complaint, agents interviewed a woman identified only as "LT" on 10 May 2021.

"LT stated that she had been dating Shough until the week prior, at which time they broke up," the FBI alleged.

After the interview, the FBI emailed LT three images from 6 January of a man in a cognac-coloured leather jacket.

"Yep, this looks like him," she replied.

She told investigators that he went to Washington DC to go see friends at the time of the riot and that she was "fairly certain" he was the man seen in images taken on 6 January wearing a helmet and cognac-coloured jacket.

Shough’s financial records showed a $129.99 payment to "Oath Keepers" in December 2020 and federal agents matched the group’s logo to an image on the helmet he was wearing, according to the court documents.

If convicted, Shough faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and fines of up to $10,000.

More than 750 people have been arrested in the 13 months since the riot at the US Capitol on 6 January. More than 235 have been charged with assaulting or impending law enforcement.