Third Idahoan arrested in Capitol riot
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Jacob Scholl, Idaho Statesman
BOISE (Idaho Statesman) – A Boise woman has become the third Idaho resident to be arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Yvonne St Cyr, 53, was taken into custody without incident Wednesday afternoon on an arrest warrant issued by the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, according to a news release from the FBI. The exact charges were not detailed.
St Cyr was arrested by members of the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Boise Police Department.
As of Thursday afternoon, St Cyr was being held at the Ada County Jail on a federal U.S. Marshals Service hold, according to Patrick Orr, spokesperson for the Ada County Sheriff’s Office.
The Boise woman was previously identified by the Idaho Statesman as participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection, as she made multiple posts to Facebook during the Capitol assault detailing her actions and beliefs.
A Facebook post from Jan. 6 contained the caption “Patriots are in our house” and featured a selfie of St Cyr, and another shot showed several people inside a Capitol room with an overturned table.
One Facebook Live video posted on St Cyr’s page shows the mob of people on the Capitol steps, as others inside the building are calling for “glasses and gas masks.” Shortly after, the camera flips to show St Cyr inside as she mentions the need to charge her phone.
The riot two weeks before inauguration day by then-President Donald Trump supporters left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer. The rioters, some of them armed, broke through doors, broke glass, knocked down barricades, stole items from the Senate chamber and from offices, and caused lawmakers to take cover after being evacuated.
A day after the Capitol riot, St Cyr and her husband, Troy, took to Facebook Live and explained their experiences at the Capitol. Yvonne St Cyr said on the livestream that she “made CNN” when she leaned out a window and reportedly yelled “this is our house.”
“God put me in that window, so I’m assuming God put me on CNN screaming like a mad woman,” St Cyr said. “So hey, maybe I’m going to get arrested again, but I would get arrested and I would die for this country. So no regrets.”
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An FBI spokesperson told the Statesman that Troy St Cyr was not arrested Wednesday, and said the bureau cannot confirm nor deny whether he is under investigation.
Yvonne St Cyr is the second Treasure Valley resident to be arrested in the riot.
Josiah Colt was seen jumping onto the floor of the Senate Chambers and sitting in the vice president’s chair. He also posted several things to social media admitting his participation, and later apologized for his actions. Since his arrest on Jan. 12, Colt has been indicted on four federal charges that could land him in prison if convicted.
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The other Idaho man arrested, Sandpoint resident Michael Pope, was taken into custody by law enforcement on Feb. 12. He’s facing eight federal charges after he was indicted on Feb. 17.
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St Cyr was arrested on Dec. 8 on a trespassing charge during a Central District Health meeting to discuss coronavirus health-safety measures. Board members were considering a measure that would have mandated the wearing of masks in public and private places across the district, though the meeting was later ended because of security concerns.
Before Jan. 6, St Cyr wrote multiple Facebook posts in support of QAnon, the online conspiracy theory that, among other things, claims Donald Trump was fighting a secret cabal of Democrats and Hollywood elites who eat and sexually abuse children.
As of Thursday afternoon, it was not immediately clear when St Cyr will appear in court, as charging documents were still unavailable.