Colorado Springs man who served as a pastor arrested for alleged role in U.S. Capitol riot

WASHINGTON (KKTV) -A Colorado Springs man allegedly filmed himself storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 saying he would probably lose his job as a pastor for doing so.

The Department of Justice shared some details on the case against 33-year-old Tyler Ethridge with the public on Friday. You can read the charging document at the bottom of this article. According to the documents, Ethridge climbed a media scaffolding and encouraged the crowd to keep fighting. He filmed several videos while he made his way into the Capitol.

“I’m probably going to lose my job as a pastor after this,” Ethridge allegedly said in a video he filmed and posted to social media. “I think we’re to a point where talk is cheap. If this makes me lose my, my reputation, I don’t care.”

Following Jan. 6, 2021, the documents state Ethridge continued to post on social media about his role in storming the Capitol.

“Don’t be afraid of what they sentence you with,” pone post from Sept. 24, 2021 reads . “I’m not. I’m ready for whatever I’ll be charged with. America is still primed and ready.”

In the 18 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 850 people have been arrested in connection with the incident.

11 News Partner The Gazette learned Ethridge was a 2017 graduate of the Practical Government School at Andrew Wommack’s Charis Bible College in Woodland Park. It isn’t clear if Ethridge is currently working as a pastor, but the Gazette adds that on Jan. 6, Ethridge was a pastor at Christ-Center Church of Tampa in Dover, Fla. The congregation announced on Jan. 19 that he was no longer with the parish.

This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. The charging documents were filed July 7: