Ryan Kelley, one of five Republican candidates for governor of Michigan, was charged with crimes on Thursday for his participation in the 2021 post-election riot at the U.S. Capitol.

FBI spokesperson Mara Schneider said Kelley, 40, was detained in western Michigan and is awaiting a court hearing in Grand Rapids. His arrest occurred only hours before the House committee investigating the rebellion held a highly-anticipated public hearing, displaying never-before-seen video, audio, and an assortment of evidence illustrating the day's horrific violence.

Kelley's campaign made no immediate comment.

Kelley's participation in the January 6 uprising is well-known. Federal investigators presented photographs of him wearing a backward baseball cap to excite the pro-Donald Trump throng.

According to an FBI affidavit, Kelley was recorded on video outside the Capitol waving to the crowd and encouraging them toward the stairs going into the building.

In addition, he used his cell phone "to record the crowd assaulting and pushing past Capitol Police officers." After causing police to retreat, he is later spotted amid a mob that climbed the stairs to a Capitol door, according to the document.

According to the criminal complaint, Kelley, a resident of Allendale Township, is accused of engaging in disruptive behavior, damaging public property, and entering a restricted area without authorization.

Kelley is one of five candidates on the August 2 ballot for the Republican primary. The victor will face Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat.

Kelley is among the more than 800 people facing criminal charges about the riot on January 6. More than 300 individuals have pled guilty, primarily to minor counts carrying a maximum sentence of one year in prison. Some who have asserted guilty to misdemeanors have received brief prison sentences, while others have received home confinement or only probation.

Last week, Kelley withdrew to participate in a discussion because conference organizers on Mackinac Island demanded confirmation of a COVID-19 immunization or a negative test.

During the initial months of the epidemic, Kelley organized a demonstration at the Michigan State Capitol by encouraging heavily armed militias to assemble within the statehouse.

He told The Associated Press that militia members are "law-abiding, law-abiding citizens who love this country, with perhaps a few bad apples." The question for you is, "Are there bad apples in most of the groups that we have?"