Colbert Staffers Arrested, Charged After Entering Capitol Complex

A group of staffers for CBS’s “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” were arrested and charged with unlawful entry Thursday night after allegedly entering a House office building illegally, Newsmax has learned.

“On June 16, 2022, at approximately 8:30 p.m., U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) received a call for a disturbance in the Longworth House Office Building,” a USCP statement read.

The authorities further stated that the group, which they identified as seven individuals, were not being escorted nor had valid congressional IDs.

However, there might be more arrests involved. Fox reporter Chad Pergram said in a tweet following the incident that the network confirmed the arrests of nine CBS employees, two more than police initially stated.

The nine listed were Jake Plunkett, Allison Martinez, Tyrone Dean, Stephen Romond, Nicoletta Green, Brendan Hurley, Robert Smigel, Josh Comers, and David Feldman.

“Robert Smigel is known for being the voice of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. He also produced short cartoons for Saturday Night Live’s ‘TV Funhouse,'” a follow-up tweet from Pergram read.

Authorities also determined them to “be a part of a group that had been directed by the USCP to leave the building earlier in the day” and were subsequently charged with unlawful entry.

“This is an active criminal investigation and may result in additional criminal charges after consultation with the U.S. Attorney,” the USCP said.

A spokesperson for CBS told Fox that Smigel was at the Capitol Complex on Wednesday and Thursday to record comedy segments for the program. They also claimed the interviews were authorized and pre-arranged with congressional aides.

“After leaving the members’ offices on their last interview of the day, the production team stayed to film stand-ups and other final comedy elements in the halls” when Capitol Police detained them, the network’s statement added.

Via        Newsmax