Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Feds Charge NJ Gym Owner For Allegedly Punching Cop At Capitol Riots
By
Sydney Pereira
Published Jan 24, 2021
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Sydney Pereira
Published Jan 24, 2021
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
A New Jersey gym owner who protested COVID-19 lockdown orders has been charged with punching a cop during the Capitol riots earlier this month, federal authorities announced on Friday.
Stockholm, New Jersey resident Scott Kevin Fairlamb is accused of shoving and punching an officer on the West Front of the Capitol on January 6th, when a mob of insurrectionists stormed the Capitol and threatened lawmakers during the ballot certification of the 2020 presidential election.
Fairlamb, a 43-year-old former ultimate fighter and owner of Fairlamb Fit in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, was seen in a video submitted to the FBI pushing and then punching an officer in the head, according to an affidavit.
In another video that Fairlamb posted to Facebook, he says, while wielding a baton, "What Patriots do? We fuckin' disarm them and then we storm fuckin' the Capitol," according to the affidavit. An informant told the FBI Fairlamb had deleted other Facebook videos of him inside the Capitol building, but other videos showed him on scaffolding on the Capitol grounds and appearing to exit the building.
A screengrab from a video Scott Fairlamb posted on his Facebook account during the Capitol riots.
He's charged with assaulting an officer, civil disorder, unlawful entry of a restricted building while armed with a dangerous or deadly weapon, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in D.C.
He opened the gym, Fairlamb Fit, in 2014. In May, he protested Governor Phil Murphy's coronavirus restrictions saying he planned to reopen his gym, regardless of emergency public health orders. Fairlamb told CBS News that Murphy had "overstepped his boundaries and it's time for these gyms that are, that are essential to open up."
A bio on his gym's website states he was "proclaimed to become a top ultimate fighter until his journey for greatness took a ominous detour." He had been diagnosed with leukemia, which his lawyer, Harley Breite, says he is still fighting, NJ.com reported.
HuffPost reports that Fairlamb's brother, Preston "Jay" Fairlamb III, is in the Secret Service and had at one point led security for then-First Lady Michelle Obama. An acquaintance of Fairlamb's told HuffPost Fairlamb had been swayed by conspiracy theories over the past several years.
NJ.com reported that U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III had permitted the release Fairlamb on a $50,000 unsecured appearance bond with home detention requirements. Federal prosecutors are appealing that ruling, the news site reported.
Breite told Gothamist that Fairlamb is being transferred from New Jersey to D.C. and remains in custody until another detention hearing is held this week.
"My client is in fact innocent of these charges and we hope soon that the totality of the facts and evidence will come to the public light," Breite said in a phone interview. "My client went there to peacefully express his opinion. ... Had my client intended to commit any crime, like other people there that day, my client would have taken measures to conceal his identity and his appearance."
Another man, Jeffrey Sabol, was held without bail after he attempted to escape charges by booking a flight to Switzerland and, at some point in time, attempted to kill himself, according to a federal prosecutor, as reported by the Associated Press.
Sabol is accused of dragging an officer down the steps of the Capitol to beat the officer with a flagpole with an American flag. The 51-year-old geophysicist from Colorado spent a week at a psychiatric facility and several days at Westchester Medical Center, where he was arrested Friday morning.
The Washington Post reported that the Justice Department has so far charged more than 135 people for crimes related to the riot. The department and the FBI are debating whether to charge every person who had been a part of the riot since some had not been directly involved in violent behavior, as well as concerns that D.C.'s federal court would become overwhelmed. About 800 people stormed the Capitol, the newspaper reported.
This article has been updated with a statement from the defendant's attorney as well as information clarifying that the Fairlamb remains in custody.
Tagged
capitol riots
new jersey
gym
Sydney Pereira
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Why New Yorkers should care about bats beyond spooky season
As Bat Week begins, state wildlife officials urge New Yorkers to protect bats, which play an important role in the environment.
By
Catalina Gonella
Published Oct 25, 2026 at 6:44 p.m. ET
Serbians forced to wait hours to vote at NYC consulate as Balkan nation holds election
Early voting may have kicked off in New York this weekend, but Serbian immigrants seeking to vote had a much tighter window on Sunday.
By
Jill Webb
and
Michael Sol Warren
News
Serbians forced to wait hours to vote at NYC consulate as Balkan nation holds election
Early voting may have kicked off in New York this weekend, but Serbian immigrants seeking to vote had a much tighter window on Sunday.
By
Jill Webb
and
Michael Sol Warren
Retired NYPD detective charged in George Washington Bridge killing out on $1M bail
By
Michael Sol Warren
Suicides decline in NYC, but inequities persist across groups
By
Jill Webb
Cuts to rural healthcare become key issue for upstate votes in race for NY governor
By
Samuel King
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .