A former government employee with links to federal intelligence agencies has been arrested in Virginia. He is accused of falsely implicating seven former co-workers in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol building.
Miguel Zapata was charged on Thursday for allegedly submitting deceptive tips to the FBI using a variety of burner emails to allege that these individuals were involved in the violence that occurred on Jan. 6.
According to prosecutors, between February and April 2021, Zapata allegedly concocted fake stories about his former coworkers’ involvement in the events of Jan. 6 and submitted them via the FBI’s anonymous tip line that has been used to gather information following the Capitol breach. Over 1,300 individuals have so far been charged for their alleged involvement.
“These tips variously alleged that the government employees and contractors were physically present at or involved in the attack at the Capitol or had shared classified information with individuals and groups present at the riot with the intent to assist these groups in overthrowing the United States government,” charging documents said.
Zapata is accused of sending the home addresses, full names, and security clearance levels of his former colleagues to the FBI, which prompted the FBI and some of the victims’ employers to launch investigations into their alleged conduct based on the faulty information.
“None of the seven government employees and contractors were in Washington, D.C., on January 6 or attacked the Capitol,” prosecutors confirmed in court records.
In one instance, Zapata allegedly claimed one of his targets “espouses extremist ideology in the work place” and discussed their ties to various far-right wing groups like the Boogaloo Bois, Proud Boys, and the Oath Keepers.
Zapata allegedly pointed the finger at a former manager who hired him in 2015. One of his tips alleged that the victim used to “share classified information” with these supposed extremist groups to help them carry out a coup d’etat against the government.
He is reportedly being charged with “one count of providing materially false statements to law enforcement.”
The charging documents explain how the authorities discovered Zapata’s alleged crimes.
Because of similarities in the wording of the tips, the grouping of the dates the tips were submitted, and the technical tradecraft used to submit them, these tips appeared to be submitted by the same individual. These tips variously alleged that the government employees and contractors were physically present at or involved in the attack at the Capitol or had shared classified information with individuals and groups present at the riot with the intent to assist these groups in overthrowing the United States government.
According to FBI records, all seven tips were submitted from four specific, identified IP addresses. Subscriber information for these IP addresses demonstrated that all four were assigned to a particular provider (hereinafter, “Company A”). Company A provides a service that allows its users to access the Internet via an isolated web browser to help protect users from security threats and for other purposes. In general, when a user of Company A’s services accesses a website through Company A’s product, the website will record an IP address associated with Company A, and not the end user.
Zapata has not yet been arraigned and was released on his own recognizance after a court appearance on Thursday.
