Just before midnight on President Donald Trump’s first day back in office, two convicted Jan. 6 rioters walked out of the Central Detention Facility in Washington, D.C.
Paul Ingrassia, who is the incoming White House liaison with the Department of Justice, emerged after more than an hour inside the jail and said that Andrew and Matthew Valentin — two brothers from Pennsylvania arrested for assaulting law enforcement during the attacks on the Capitol — were processed and had left the facility.
Rioters storm the West Front of the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
The brothers had just received their sentences of 2.5 years apiece and taken into custody to serve them out on Jan. 17. They pleaded guilty in September 2024.
They are the only two who are expected to be released tonight, according to Ingrassia. However, family members outside of the facility said that they remain hopeful.
According to the most recent numbers from the DOJ, a total of eight pardoned inmates – out of the over 1,500 pardoned – are incarcerated inside the facility.
ABC News has not yet confirmed the release beyond the liaison’s statement.
-ABC News’ Jay O’Brien, Alexander Mallin, Katherine Faulders and Briana Stewart