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Chicago man turns himself in to FBI for alleged involvement in Jan. 6 riot

By Jon Seidel
Published  December 1, 2022 12:49pm CST
News
Sun-Times Media Wire

CHICAGO - A Chicago man who apparently turned himself in to the FBI after it interviewed his associates now faces criminal charges for allegedly ramming the doors of the U.S. Capitol as rioters tried to enter the building on Jan. 6, 2021.

James "Mac" McNamara, 61, now faces several charges, including assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers; civil disorder; destruction of government property; and committing an act of physical violence on Capitol grounds.

He is at least the 34th Illinois resident charged in connection with the riot at the Capitol. Roughly 900 people have been arrested nationwide.

Though the charges were filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., court records show U.S. Magistrate Judge Sunil Harjani in Chicago ordered McNamara’s release Wednesday on $10,000 unsecured bond.

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The feds allege that McNamara wore a black baseball cap over a do-rag — possibly in the colors of the U.S. flag — glasses, a blue-white gaiter, a black zip-up jacket over an olive shirt, and jeans during the Jan. 6 riot. They allege that, while rioters were trying to enter the north doors of the Capitol at 3:10 p.m., McNamara was caught on video lunging forward, swinging his arms, picking up a metal bike rack and ramming it at the door several times.

They said he later tried to enter the building but officers used pepper spray and rubber bullets to stop him.

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McNamara was later given the online moniker #RailMixer.

The feds say they matched images of the rioter to McNamara’s Illinois driver’s license photo. In June, they said they also interviewed his "known associates."

Then, on June 27, an FBI special agent received a phone call from McNamara’s attorney, who said McNamara wanted to talk about the riot, court records show. On July 1, the agent met with McNamara and the attorney at the attorney’s Chicago law offices. And during the meeting, the agent confirmed that McNamara was the person who had been identified as #RailMixer, according to the records.

McNamara is represented by attorneys Thomas Breen, Christopher Dallas and Robert Stanley, court records show. They did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.