King Of Prussia Man Allegedly Yelled 'Here It Comes' While Beating D.C. Officer With Flag

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA — A local man who is facing federal charges in connection with the beating of a Washington, D.C., police officer with a flagpole during the Jan. 6 riot was said to have taken specific aim at the metro cop when he unleashed his fury, authorities said.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Howard Richardson, 71, was caught on video approaching an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department and yelling, "here it comes," before he beat the officer with a metal flagpole that had a Donald Trump flag affixed to it.

Authorities said Richardson only stopped the assault when the flagpole broke in his hands.

Richardson is charged with engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, civil disorder, and assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers with a dangerous weapon, among other counts.

The Justice Department said Richardson had been with a group of other Trump supporters near a bicycle rack-style barricade outside the Capitol Building around 1:38 p.m. Jan. 6 when he approached the officer, who had been working a detail charged with protecting the Capitol.

Federal authorities said Richardson surrendered Tuesday in Philadelphia and made his initial court appearance the following day at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The case is being investigated by the Fort Washington Resident Agency of the FBI's Philadelphia Field Office and the Washington Field Office.

Richardson was identified as the 362nd person sought by law enforcement in connection with the Jan. 6 riot.

Assistance in the case was provided by the Metropolitan Police Department in D.C. as well as the U.S. Capitol Police and the Upper Merion Township Police Department in Montgomery County.

According to the Justice Department, more than 675 people have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. This includes more than 210 people who have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement operations.

Anyone with additional information about persons involved in the Capitol riot is asked to call the FBI at 800-225-5324.