Montgomery County man charged in Capitol insurrection

A Montgomery County man is the latest Philadelphia-area resident to face charges in the January Capitol riot, according to court records unsealed Friday.

Law enforcement received a photo of Brian Stenz, 51, of Norristown, inside the Capitol on Jan. 6, leading investigators to charge him in connection to the riot.

Photos taken from inside the Capitol, and other social media posts, have served as tips for law enforcement as they seek to charge those who played roles in the incident that left five people dead. Stenz, who is facing four charges related to illegally entering the Capitol, is one of the dozens in Pennsylvania and South Jersey charged so far in connection to the insurrection.

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Stenz had sent a photo of himself in a green face covering and baseball cap, alongside another man in an American flag mask, inside the Capitol, to a friend, according to court records. A Trump 2020 flag can be seen in the photo behind them.

That friend then shared the photo with another person, who also knew Stenz and who then tipped off law enforcement, records say. The Pennsylvania State Police referred the case to the FBI on Jan. 22, and federal investigators interviewed Stenz with his attorney on April 9, according to records.

Stenz confirmed to authorities he was in the photo, and said he traveled to Washington on Jan. 6 and entered the Capitol. Stenz also told investigators he saw others breaking windows to enter the building, according to court records.

Joseph Marrone, Stenz’s attorney, said his client believed he was “legally” following the crowd in protest. He was inside of the Capitol, Marrone said, for “a couple of minutes, not even.” Now, Marrone said, Stenz regrets going to Washington that day.

“Brian, like any other Trump supporter, went down to express his political beliefs. He was allowed to do that. He was allowed to protest. And I think all he did was get caught up in a political moment, but I don’t think he did anything wrong,” Marrone said. “When he realized it appeared that various actions were not going the right way he immediately left.”

Stenz pleaded guilty in January in Montgomery County Magisterial District Court to providing false statements while attempting to purchase a pistol in 2018 from a West Norriton Township gun store. Though he had pleaded guilty in 2007 to stalking, he answered “No” on his firearms forms when asked about previous convictions. He was sentenced to one year of probation.

In the insurrection case, Stenz was arrested Friday in Fort Washington and released on his own recognizance. Marrone said a virtual arraignment is scheduled for May 5.