TRIGGER-HAPPY

Jan. 6 Defendant Opens Fire at Cops Checking on Him

Deputies were sent to perform a welfare check on Nathan Pelham of Texas the day he was scheduled to surrender to the FBI.

A Texas man facing charges over the Jan. 6 Capitol riot fired on local deputies as they tried to perform a welfare check the day he was scheduled to surrender to the FBI, federal prosecutors said on Thursday. Nathan Pelham, 40, was arrested in connection with the shooting earlier this week and charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. If convicted of the gun charge, he could face up to 15 years in prison on top of the potential three-year sentence he’s already staring down in his Capitol case. Last week, federal prosecutors charged him with four misdemeanor counts stemming from his alleged breach of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. An FBI agent instructed Pelham to self-surrender on Monday, and he agreed, according to North Texas e-News. But that day, Pelham’s family called the Hunt County Sheriff’s Office, informing deputies that he had a firearm. Officers sent to his home were shot at several times by Pelham, who ignored orders to put down the weapon. No injuries were reported.