Tambourine-shaking ex-cop from Queens arrested for invading Capitol
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Former NYPD spokesperson Sara Carpenter was filmed shaking a tambourine in the Capitol rotunda during the deadly attack Jan. 6. Image via DOJ
By David Brand
A retired NYPD spokesperson from Richmond Hill was arrested and charged Tuesday for her role in the deadly Jan. 6 riot inside the U.S. Capitol.
Federal prosecutors said Sara Carpenter, 51, recorded the insurrection and was caught on video shaking a tambourine in the building’s rotunda while fellow rioters stormed the Senate chamber and killed Capitol police officers.
A day after the attack, an anonymous informant tipped off the FBI about Carpenter’s involvement. She had called a relative and said she was teargassed, the tipster told agents.
Carpenter turned herself into federal authorities Tuesday and is charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, as well as other misdemeanor trespassing and disorderly conduct offenses.
Prosecutors said she complied with investigators and turned over the tambourine, as well as video she filmed inside the Capitol.
Magistrate Judge Sanket J. Bulsara released Carpenter without bail following her initial appearance in Brooklyn federal court Tuesday. She cannot travel outside New York City or Long Island or possess a firearm based on the conditions of her release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Hafetz said Carpenter’s cooperation during the investigation persuaded prosecutors to pursue lenient pretrial conditions.
“Any involvement [in the Capitol riot] is serious criminal conduct and is being treated as such,” Hafetz said. “That being said … Ms. Carpenter’s cooperation with the investigation, including her self surrender today, we believe the imposed conditions at this time are sufficient to ensure her return to court and protect the safety of the community.”
Carpenter was represented by Michelle Gelernt of Federal Defenders Services.
Carpenter joined the NYPD in 1994 before retiring in 2004, a department spokesperson said. She went on to become an inventor, creating a dog leash with a pocket for waste bags featured on 2011 reality show.
She is the latest Queens resident busted for her role in the Capitol attack. Republican District Leader Philip Grillo, a former candidate in the special election for Queens Council District 24, was arrested last month in Glen Oaks. He was charged with obstructing an official proceeding, trespassing and other offenses for his alleged role in the Capitol insurrection. A federal magistrate judge ordered Grillo released on $100,000 bond.
Two other Queens residents face federal charges for allegedly threatening to kill lawmakers, though they did not travel to D.C. for the attack.
