FBI Arrests Hopkinton Man for Role in Jan. 6 Insurrection

HOPKINTON, RI — Earlier today, special agents and officers with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in Rhode Island arrested William B. Cotton, 53, in Hopkinton, for his documented involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection.

Agents and officers executed an arrest warrant issued by the United States Court for the District of Columbia in making the arrest. The Hopkinton resident was taken into custody without incident and is charged with the following:

18 U.S.C. § 1752 (a)(1) – Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds

18 U.S.C. § 1752 (a)(2) – Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds

40 U.S.C. § 5104 (e)(2)(D) – Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building or Grounds

40 U.S.C. § 5104 (e)(2)(G) – Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building

Based on a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court Dec. 6, 2022 (see attached file), the FBI argues there’s probable cause to believe that among other laws, “Cotton violated 18 U.S.C. § 1752(a)(1) and (2), which makes it a crime to (1) knowingly enter or remain in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority to do; and (2) knowingly, and with intent to impede or disrupt the orderly conduct of Government
business or official functions, engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct in, or within such proximity to, any restricted building or grounds when, or so that, such conduct, in fact, impedes or disrupts the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions; or attempts or conspires to do so.”

In the complaint, Cotton is photographed in the crowd outside and entering the Capitol Jan. 6, and in several photos taken inside the capitol, including an apparent recording of him chanting the word, “traitor,” according to the complaint.

The arrest brings the total number of people charged by the FBI Boston Division in connection with the riots at the U.S. Capitol to 18. Cotton is the third person from Rhode Island arrested for their connection to the insurrection. Cotton complaint