A Pass Christian business owner has been arrested and charged for his involvement in the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
63-year-old James Allen Knowles, who is the owner of Knowles Construction, Inc., in Saucier, was one of the over 1,000 convicted individuals that attended the riot at the Capitol in 2021.
Knowles appeared in court in Gulfport on Tuesday for an initial appearance after receiving four federal charges. The charges included:
- Entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds
- Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds
- Disorderly conduct in a Capitol building or grounds
- Parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a capitol building
According to court documents, security camera footage and photos showed Knowles entering the Capital through the Parliamentarian Door around 2:48 p.m. on January 6, 2021, before leaving the building two minutes later.
Three calls were also traced back to Knowles’ cell phone, with the first being made to Senator Roger Wicker’s office. Knowles then called Senator Cindy Hyde Smith’s office before calling a pizza place on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.
Knowles’ bond was set at $25,000 following Tuesday’s court hearing and is expected to appear in court again on Thursday.
He is currently facing a maximum of one year in prison for each of the first three charges and up to five years for the fourth offense.
