Rioters dragged police officers down Capitol stairs and beat a cop with a pole flying U.S. flag

Photographs and videos that have emerged online in the aftermath of the pro-Trump assault on the U.S. Capitol building Wednesday show the true extent of the violence unleashed by the mob. A particularly horrifying scene from the attempted insurrection at the Capitol recently shocked social media users as it showed multiple rioters pulling police officers out of a formation and dragging them down the stairs of the building. A disturbing video of the attack which — according to The Washington Post — was published by Storyful last week and aired by CNN on Sunday, also shows a man bashing one of the outnumbered officers with a pole flying an American flag.

Although there was widespread speculation on social media that one of the officers was Brian Sicknick — the U.S. Capitol Police officer who was killed by a rioter wielding a fire extinguisher — videos show that the officers involved in this incident were members of the Metropolitan Police Department. The officers seen in photos and videos of the moment that have since surfaced online are yet to be officially identified and the extent of the injuries they suffered in the attack is not clear.

According to The New York Times, an hours-long fight to breach the Capitol began shortly after 2 p.m. when the mob on the Capitol’s west side forced its way through the police barricades and reached the building’s walls. The disturbing scene captured in the video occurred around 4:30 p.m. as hundreds of Trump supporters swarmed toward a west-side doorway and attempted to invade the building. Roughly ten minutes prior to this President Trump had tweeted a video message addressing the mob, telling the rioters: "We love you. You're very special. We've seen what happens. You see the way others are treated that are so bad and so evil. I know you how feel. But go home, and go home in peace."

Meanwhile, the rioters continued to try to force their way past the police defending the doorway. In the video, a man wearing a white and blue hat and a green jacket is seen reaching into the doorway, grabbing an officer and dragging him out with the help of another rioter in a gray hooded sweatshirt. As the two of them pulled the officer down the stairs, face down, another rioter beat him repeatedly with a pole flying an American flag as the mob chanted "USA! USA! USA!"

Seconds later, two other men yank the legs of another officer who had fallen to the ground and with the help of a third man in a gray jacket, pulled the officer down the steps as well. At least three of the individuals seen dragging police officers in the videos are said to match images included on a Metropolitan Police list of "persons of interest." They are suspected of assaulting police officers and could face federal charges. A number of officials — including Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Patrick J. Toomey (Pa.) — have strongly condemned Wednesday's attempted insurrection while over two dozen domestic terrorism investigations have been launched into the day's events.

Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) said in a statement Sunday that in a conversation he had with Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, he raised concerns about reports of active-duty military personnel participating in the violence. He also noted that the nation narrowly avoided a major disaster as some of the rioters had brought weapons and bombs to the Capitol on the day of the rally. "Long guns, molotov cocktails, explosive devices, and zip ties were recovered, which suggests a greater disaster was narrowly avoided," he revealed.