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Palmyra man, who is the son of prominent conservative activist, charged in U.S. Capitol insurrection

The charging documents show the process of Bozell being identified, which included the online conversation about him, as he was wearing a Hershey Christian Academy sweatshirt during the riot.

  • By Becky Metrick/PennLive and WITF Staff
Leo Brent Bozell as seen in footage from the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

 Federal Bureau of Investigation

Leo Brent Bozell as seen in footage from the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

This story has been updated with a statement from Hershey Christian Academy that Leo Brent Bozell was not affiliated with the school.

(Harrisburg) — A Palmyra man who the FBI said used to coach at Hershey Christian Academy has been charged in connection with the U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6, according to newly unsealed documents.

Leo Brent Bozell IV, 41, is charged with illegally entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct and impeding an official session of Congress, according to the federal affidavit.

His father is Leo B. Bozell III, is the founder and president of the nonprofit Media Research Center, which operates the NewsBusters web site. The center’s stated aim is “to expose and neutralize the propaganda arm of the Left: the national news media.”

Footage from the riot shows Bozell inside the Capitol, including the U.S. Senate floor, according to an affidavit written by Federal Bureau of Investigation Agent Lynda W. Thomas.

The charging documents show the process of Bozell being identified, which included the online conversation about him, as he was wearing a Hershey Christian Academy sweatshirt during the riot.

Leo Brent Bozell suspect photos

A man wearing a Hershey Christian Academy shirt at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 caused the small private school’s website to crash on Friday. Photo: Twitter

But the school released a statement today saying Bozell had no affiliation with it.

We have learned that Mr. Leo Brent Bozell, IV – the individual who wore a “Hershey Christian Academy” sweatshirt while…

Posted by Hershey Christian Academy on Wednesday, February 17, 2021

 

Days after the Capitol attack in January, the Hummelstown-based academy released a statement after social media postings indicated that Bozell might be associated with the school:

“Hershey Christian Academy, as an organization, does not engage in political activities, and has no political views of its own, nor does Hershey Christian Academy express any opinions on the political beliefs of others,” officials said on Jan. 15. “Hershey Christian Academy is available to any and all law enforcement authorities that are investigating this matter, and they will have our full cooperation.”

The school also said that he was not a board member, employee or representative of the academy.

Now, court records show that Bozell was a coach with the school until March 2020.

According to the affidavit, a witness told investigators that the man in the photos was both a parent at Hershey Christian Academy and the former girls’ basketball coach.

Investigators found the girls on the team called him “Coach Zeeker” and further identified him as Bozell.

FBI investigators learned that Bozell stopped coaching the girls’ basketball team in March when the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to stop practicing and play games.

The school’s website featured a photo of Bozell holding a trophy with students, according to the affidavit. The academy’s website was unavailable Tuesday night. But it said information tying him to the school was “incorrect.”

“Mr. Bozell most certainly is not a former coach of a girls’ basketball team at our school, given that we opened in 2019 and have no sports program of any kind,” according to the school’s Facebook post.

Bozell declined to speak with a reporter who visited him at his home in January.

Several times, Thomas, the FBI agent, pointed to the social media discussion about the sweatshirt and photos from news media as part of how Bozell was identified.

Throughout the investigation, Bozell was frequently referred to as “Zeek” or “Zeeker” by witnesses. Several people sent tips and spoke with investigators about his identity and connection to the school.

One of the pieces of footage the FBI reviewed was a video clip of people walking out of the U.S. Capitol, in which Bozell can be seen leaving while talking on a cell phone.

Footage from The New Yorker shows Bozell inside the U.S. Senate Chamber, in front of a large blue flag, Thomas wrote. Although Bozell is only visible for a short time, investigators wrote that he was easily identifiable because of the school sweatshirt and other clothing.

He can also be seen holding some kind of document in the clip, according to the affidavit.

A third video found in a collection of Parler videos published by ProPublica shows Bozell on the balcony with a teen when he looks at the camera and then jumps over the railing with the same teen, Thomas wrote.

The original video of Bozell walking out of the Capitol was also found in that collection.

Finally, Thomas pointed to C-SPAN footage that showed Bozell on the balcony and walking around the Senate floor between 2:46 and 2:55 p.m. on Jan. 6.

Investigators found footage from a YouTube video where Bozell is on the U.S. Capitol’s Senate balcony with a group of people. Bozell doesn’t appear to be speaking, but the rest of the group is chanting “treason” in the clip.

Leo Brent Bozell suspect photos

Leo Brent Bozell as seen in footage from the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Screenshots provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation

“While on the U.S. Senate Chamber Balcony, the man identified as Bozell moved a camera so that the camera was pointing down to the ground of the balcony area,” Thomas wrote. “This was done as protestors began to enter the main floor of the U.S. Senate.”

Investigators say this ensured the camera was unable to record protesters entering the main floor of the chamber. The younger male can be seen covering a different camera with a jacket.

“My review of the C-SPAN video footage indicates that Bozell’s movement of a camera, along with the other individual who covered a camera with a jacket was done in coordination in order to obstruct the view of the cameras recording protestors entering the U.S. Senate Chamber,” Thomas wrote.

Federal court records do not show if Bozell is in custody or if there will be a bail hearing.

He was the 17th Pennsylvanian to be charged by the feds in connection with the riot. Five of those arrested are from central Pennsylvania.

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