2 More NJ Men Charged In 2021 Capitol Riots

BURLINGTON COUNTY, NJ — Nearly a year after a riot by protesters attempting to block the certification of the 2020 presidential election at the U.S. Capitol, two more South Jersey residents have been charged.

Michael Gianos, 33, of Marlton and 29-year-old Marcos Panayiotou, of Wrightstown were arrested last month in connection with the riot, according to separate federal affidavits.
Gianos and 30-year-old Rachel Myers, of Philadelphia, were both arrested on Dec. 1 as part of the investigation of Gloucester Township resident Lawrence Stackhouse, according to a criminal affidavit.

They are charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

Stackhouse was arrested in March 2021 and charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds, and disorderly or disruptive conduct. Read more here: Blackwood Man Arrested After Capitol Riots: Reports

A review of Stackhouse’s phone revealed several texts he shared with Gianos and Myers, according to the complaint. Stackhouse told authorities he and Myers traveled to D.C. and stayed at a hotel together the night of Jan. 5, 2021, according to the complaint. He also said Myers had entered the Capitol during the riot, authorities said.

Authorities said Gianos and Myers had exchanged messages on Facebook in which they discussed ways to prevent the certification of the election. Authorities also said Gianos told Myers that he and Stackhouse had protested together in favor of Atilis Gym in Bellmawr, which made headlines last year for repeatedly defying Gov. Phil Murphy’s executive orders amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"This is going to be an event to remember," Gianos said in one exchange, according to authorities.

Authorities said all three of them entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, and included images of them walking in the hallway outside House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. In the days after the event, Gianos told at least three people he had been involved in the riot and that he had been in Pelosi’s office, authorities said.

“How’s it going,” one person wrote to him.

“Stormed capitol,” Gianos replied, according to authorities.

But when federal authorities began looking for people who had been involved, they stopped talking about it, according to authorities.

“Don’t tell anyone you were there,” Myers told Stackhouse in one exchange, officials said. “Just move forward, and we will deal with whatever comes our way if it happens.”

“Stop buggin,” Stackhouse told her.

Myers also called the media liars and said the police had opened the doors to let everyone in, according to authorities.

One of Myers’ co-workers at a gentleman’s club in Philadelphia told authorities that Myers had openly said she was OK with a civil war, authorities said, while another called Myers a “very fanatical Trump supporter.” In the days leading up to riot, Myers had said she would be marching with the Proud Boys.

Stackhouse told Gianos he doesn’t regret a thing, and Gianos replied, “Yeah man, I feel the same,” according to authorities.

Panayiotou was arrested on Dec. 2 after an anonymous tipster sent authorities an image of the Marine reservist inside the Capitol building, authorities said. He entered through the Senate Wing door and was seen in various parts of the building, including the hallways outside of the House Gallery and Rotunda, authorities said. He was wearing a red hat that read, “Make Politicians Afraid Again.”

Panayiotou’s mother told the tipster that he had been inside the Capitol after the police “let them in,” authorities said.

Another family member confirmed that he had been inside the Capitol building, while another described him as, “very patriotic, but does stupid things sometimes,” according to authorities.

Panayiotou is charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.

In all, at least 11 South Jersey residents have been arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 riot, according to the Courier Post. Altogether, more than 725 people have been arrested nationally, and federal authorities continue their investigation.