WASHINGTON — A former Boston police K-9 officer was arrested Thursday and charged with attacking a U.S. Capitol Police officer with a chair during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
Joseph Fisher was arrested Thursday morning, court records show. He faces several counts, including felony charges of obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder and assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers.
For part of the day on Jan. 6, 2021, Fisher was "wearing a beanie with the logos of several Boston sports teams," according to his FBI affidavit. A current Boston police officer who knows Fisher positively identified him after online sleuths helped track him down, according to the FBI. Cellphone records also showed he was inside the Capitol, the bureau said.
A video cited by the FBI shows Fisher tossing a chair at an officer who was chasing another rioter who had used pepper spray against police inside the Capitol.
"Investigators verified with the U.S. Capitol Police that the Victim physically assaulted by Fisher is a U.S. Capitol Police officer and obtained the Victim’s identity," an FBI affidavit stated. "Investigators subsequently interviewed the Victim, who positively identified himself as the officer in the yellow vest, and recalled being hit with a chair. At the time of the interview, the Victim was unable to recall who had hit him with the chair or the specifics of the altercation with Fisher."
Fisher was the subject of a 2012 Boston Herald story about the "special bond" between K-9s and their handlers. NBC News has also seen an image that appears to show Fisher at a news conference during the hunt for the Boston Marathon bomber in 2013, an image that was surfaced by online sleuths who helped build the case against him. He was also featured as a law enforcement expert in a true crime show.
About 1,000 people have been charged in connection with the Capitol attack, and law enforcement officials have said the total number of defendants charged in connection with Jan. 6 could double before the statute of limitations on most of the crimes expires in 2026. The total number of people who committed conduct they could be charged with is over 3,000. The FBI has the names of hundreds of people who have not yet been charged.
