Police were crushed by mob on Capitol Hill 3:06
Washington (CNN) -
As Washington Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone lay on the ground in the United States Capitol building, stunned and injured, he realized that a group of rioters was stripping him of his equipment.
They grabbed spare ammunition, ripped the police radio from his chest and even stole his badge.
Then, Fanone, who had just received multiple shots from a stun gun to the back of his neck, heard something chilling that sent him into survival mode.
Investigators seek clues that the assault on the Capitol was planned
"Some guys started grabbing my gun and yelling, 'Kill him with your own gun,'" said Fanone, who has been a police officer for nearly two decades.
Fanone, one of three agents who spoke to CNN, described his experience fighting a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump who had invaded the Capitol, in an insurrection unheard of in modern American history.
Federal officials have said the violent details that emerge will be disturbing.
"People are going to be shocked by some of the egregious contacts that took place on Capitol Hill," Acting US Attorney Michael Sherwin said Tuesday of the attacks on police officers.
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Michael Fanone
Fanone, a narcotics detective who works in plain clothes, said he heard the commotion on Capitol Hill and grabbed his still new police uniform that had been hanging in his locker and put it on for the first time.
He ran into the building with his partner and helped the officers who were being pushed around by the agitators.
But Fanone, who says he would rather be shot than be dragged into an uncontrolled crowd, suddenly found himself in his greatest nightmare as an agent.
And in those moments, Fanone considered using deadly force.
He thought about using his weapon, but he knew that he didn't have enough firepower and would soon be overpowered again, except this time they would probably use their weapon against him and have every reason to end his life.
So the other option I thought of was trying to appeal to someone's humanity.
And I just remember screaming that I have children.
And it seemed to work, ”said the 40-year-old father of four.
These are the key arrests so far of the protagonists of the Capitol riots
A group within the agitators surrounded Fanone and protected him until help arrived, saving his life.
"Thank you, but fuck you for being there," Fanone said of the agitators who protected him at the time.
Fanone's anger and frustration was a sentiment felt by law enforcement agencies across the country, furious that Trump supporters had violated the Capitol grounds on the same day that the House and Senate confirmed Joe's victory. Biden.
Rioters hit police with US flag 1:29
Fanone's dramatic encounter with Trump-supporting agitators was repeated across the Capitol grounds as law enforcement officers fought to push them back.
Fanone, one of the many officers who were injured in the brutal battle, shared his story for the first time, still suffering from the effects of a mild heart attack.
Since the assault on the Capitol, investigators have analyzed every aspect of the events of that day, from the response of the Capitol Police to the national search for everyone involved.
Investigators are now investigating the notion that there was some level of planning, with enough evidence to indicate that it was not just a protest that got out of control, law enforcement sources told CNN.
"Certainly some things that we saw on the ground are an indication that there was some coordination, but I think that as we move forward with the investigation, a lot of that will be revealed," Acting Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee told reporters. .
Fanone said the agitators had weapons, either their own or taken from their fellow police officers.
“They sprayed chemical irritants on us.
They had tubes and different metal objects, batons, some of which I think had been taken from the law enforcement officers.
They had been beating us with those, ”said Fanone, adding that he was not going to sit at a desk while an insurrection took place on Capitol Hill.
And then there was the large number of agitators.
The force that came from that side, "he added.
"It was difficult to resist when there were only about 30 men against 15,000."
Fighting pepper spray for bears
Agent Christina Laury, a member of the Metropolitan Police Department's weapons recovery unit, arrived at the Capitol around 12:30 p.m. ET and watched the groups of rioters gain ground.
Laury, who was watching the line to make sure there were no gaps, received a much stronger type of pepper spray that is supposed to be used only on bears, he said.
“The individuals pushed the agents, they beat the agents.
They sprayed us with what we essentially called bear spray, because it's used on bears, ”he said.
Pro-Trump rioters chase police on Capitol 1:39
Unfortunately, it affects you for a while.
It's so much worse than pepper spray, ”Laury added.
«Close your eyes… You have to spray and soak yourself with water.
And in those moments it's scary because you can't see anything and there are people struggling to get through.
She was lucky not to be hit, but saw others who were hit with objects.
«They were hit with metal objects.
Metal posts.
I remember seeing hairpins.
They were spraying them, they were being shot down, ”said Laury, adding that reinforcements kept rotating so others could rest during the hours-long battle.
“They would pull the agents to recover and (the reinforcements) intervened to get to the front line.
And then more officers would come down and come in and the officers who had been shot down were better again and were fighting because the bottom line was that we would not let anyone through.
'He was practically foaming at the mouth'
Daniel Hodges
Agent Daniel Hodges was one of those agents who tried to fight the rioters, but was injured during the fight.
Hodges gained notoriety after images circulated of him being smashed through a door.
The 32-year-old officer is seen in the clip with blood dripping from his teeth as he continued to gasp for enough air to be able to yell "Help" at the top of his lungs.
Hodges ran to the Capitol to offer support like many others and soon found himself being mugged by an enraged mob who, he said, believed they were patriots.
"There was a guy who tore my mask off, he was able to rip the baton off and hit me with it," said Hodges, who was trapped in the door, adding that his arm was bent before the gun was ripped off.
"Practically foaming at the mouth, these people were true believers in the worst way."
Hodges was eventually rescued by other agents who came to his aid.
"You knew things were going wrong," said Hodges, who miraculously left without major injuries and may have suffered a minor concussion.
"I was screaming at the top of my lungs and an officer behind me was able to make enough room for me to get me out of there and into the back so I could get out."
It was Hodges' first visit to the Capitol building.
Approximately 20 detained by Capitol Police 1:18
'They felt entitled'
The patrol officer said he had been hearing about the possibility of violence for years, so he was not surprised when rioters stormed the Capitol.
What did surprise him was how the insurgents thought the police would be on their side.
"Some of them felt that we would be friendly quickly because many of them were talking," Hodges said.
"They were saying things like, 'Yeah, we've been supporting them in this whole Black Lives Matter thing, they should back us,' and they felt entitled."
He added, “They felt that they would just walk there and tell us that they were here to take back Congress and that we would go along with them and walk hand in hand and take control of the nation.
But obviously that is not and will never be the case.
Now, just days after Biden's inauguration, federal authorities are warning of other threats that may arise.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser has publicly warned people not to travel to the city for the inauguration.
Hodges echoed those sentiments, saying he wanted not only residents, but also Trump supporters and extremists to stay home.
But with one caveat.
Stay home.
Stop this, ”Hodges said.
On the other hand, I hope they get caught.
Let's leave it that way".
Assault on the Capitol