WASHINGTON, D.C. – Philip Sean Grillo, a 49-year-old man from Queens, New York, was found guilty on Tuesday, Dec. 5, of multiple charges, including felony obstruction, stemming from his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. The conviction was delivered by a federal jury in Washington, D.C., marking another significant development in the ongoing legal actions related to the Capitol riot.
Grillo faced five charges, with the most serious being obstruction of an official proceeding, a felony. The other misdemeanor offenses included entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
Evidence presented during the trial revealed Grillo’s active participation in the riot. He was first seen at the front of a group facing the police line on the West Plaza of the Capitol grounds. Grillo illegally entered the Capitol through a broken window near the Senate Wing, carrying a megaphone. His actions inside included ascending to the Rotunda, being interviewed on video, and making statements affirming his intention to “stop the steal.”
Surveillance footage showed Grillo among the first to breach police lines and open exterior doors to the Rotunda, allowing more rioters inside. He was also recorded smoking marijuana inside the Capitol and interacting with other rioters.
During the trial, Grillo claimed ignorance of Congress meeting in the Capitol building, despite his candidacy for election to the U.S. House to represent New York’s 3rd Congressional District. His arrest by the FBI occurred on Feb. 23, 2021, in New York.