A key figure in the “Stop the Steal” movement after the 2020 election says he is cooperating with the Justice Department’s investigation into the attack on the Capitol after receiving a subpoena.
Ali Alexander, who helped organize a series of pro-Trump events in November and December of 2020 after President Joe Biden won the election, said in a statement Friday that a federal grand jury is seeking information linked to rallies held by Trump supporters in Washington.
He is the first high-profile figure known to cooperate with the Justice Department’s probe.
“I don’t believe I have information that will be useful to them but I’m cooperating as best I can further reiterate that I’m not a target because I did nothing wrong,” Alexander said in a statement through his lawyer.
He said the information sought by the grand jury touched on the group “Women for America First” and the “Save America” rally that took place before a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol.
Alexander’s cooperation was first reported by The New York Times.
Jonathon Moseley, a lawyer who has represented Alexander in a lawsuit related to Jan. 6 but was familiar with the grand jury subpoena, cautioned that Alexander’s cooperation may not be as revelatory as some might hope.
“The word cooperate is sometimes uncertain because that doesn’t mean he’s necessarily going to say anything that some people think he’s going to say but he’s going to answer the questions that he can,” Moseley told NBC News.
Alexander took part in a pair of “Stop the Steal” rallies in Washington in November and December ahead of former President Donald Trump’s event at the Ellipse on Jan. 6.
In his statement, Alexander also referred to an event he planned for Jan. 6 but “never happened” because of the Capitol riot.
The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack previously requested Alexander’s testimony and documents in flurry of subpoenas sent to organizers of the pro-Trump “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6, including Nathan Martin. In early December, Alexander sat for a deposition with the committee and gave it a host of documents that offered insight into some of the activities that led up to the attack.
Alexander referred to that deposition in his statement Friday.
“While others have rightfully invoked their constitutional rights to protect themselves from what is perceived as a partisan investigation, I have fully complied with a subpoena by the Democrats January 6th Committee and testified, under oath, for 8 hours,” he said.
The sprawling federal investigation, which had primarily focused on rioters on the ground on the day of the attack, has expanded into examining potentially seditious conspiracy, and broached the planning behind the rally that preceded the attack on the Capitol.
Members of the far-right Oath Keepers have also pleaded guilty to reduced charges in cases related to the attack and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
On Friday, Proud Boys leader Charles Donohoe, who was charged in a conspiracy case related to the attack, pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors as they prepare for trial against other members of the extremist group.
In his statement, Alexander said he “did not coordinate any movements with the Proud Boys or even see them that day,” and that while he was in contact with members of the Oath Keepers, “I wasn’t in communication with any of the aforementioned groups while I was near the Capitol working to get people away from the building.”
Alexander also denied any wrongdoing.
“I did nothing wrong and I am not in possession of evidence that anyone else had plans to commit unlawful acts,” he said. “I denounce anyone who planned to subvert my permitted event and the other permitted events of that day on Capitol grounds to stage any counterproductive activities.”
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism