Former D.C. Metropolitan police officer Michael Fanone reportedly claimed on Tuesday that members of his former department taunted him during a congressional award ceremony, calling him a “piece of s—t.”
According to NBC News reporter Ryan J. Reilly, Fanone, who has been extremely vocal about his harrowing experiences at the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, said members of the MPD’s Special Operations Division also “mockingly called me a great f—king hero while clapping.”
Fanone told Reilly the officers “called him a disgrace, said he was not a cop anymore, and said he didn’t belong at the ceremony.” The heckling happened in the rotunda of the Capitol, Reilly tweeted.
Fanone says they called him a disgrace, said he was not a cop anymore, and said he didn't belong at the ceremony. It happened in the rotunda, he said.
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) December 6, 2022
The former narcotics officer allegedly told Washington Post reporter Peter Hermann that he “has been ostracized for being outspoken about the Capitol riot” by those who want to “play down the violence that day.”
Fanone told Hermann “I mean, at the end of the day, if those people are too ignorant to understand what I’ve been advocating for these past two years and the fact I had a lot to do with us being here today, then f—them.”
Fanone told me: "I mean, at the end of the day, if those people are too ignorant to understand what I've been advocating for these past two years and the fact I had a lot to do with us being here today, then f— them."
— Peter Hermann (@phscoop) December 6, 2022
According to Hermann, Fanone said he doesn’t bring his family to Capitol Hill events because “I don’t want them to be subjected to what I am subjected to when I appear with members of my own department, a department I have advocated for at great personal cost.”
D.C. police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck replied: "We're not focused on any one individual. We are focusing on the contributions of an entire department that saved Democracy on Jan. 6, 2021."
— Peter Hermann (@phscoop) December 6, 2022
Since the Capitol Hill riot, the former narcotics officer has been hailed as an American hero in the corporate media, but less than ten years ago his on-the-job antics would have earned him derision and scorn.
As American Greatness’ own Julie Kelly exclusively reported in October, less than ten years ago he was accused of a racist assault against a black attorney.
In a 2014 lawsuit, Michael A. Maddox accused Fanone and his partner of using “their personal prejudices, biases, stereotypes, generalizations, and profiles” as justification for conducting an aggressive and illegal search of his person. The city ended up paying Maddox $175,000 in damages.
During the award ceremony, congressional leaders bestowed their highest honor—the Congressional Gold Medal—to the members of the United States Capitol Police who defended the U.S. Capitol during the two hour riot.
“Thank you for having our backs. Thank you for saving our country. Thank you for being not just our friends but our heroes,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said.
In an awkward moment, the family of US Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died of of a stroke one day after responding to the riot, refused to shake hands with House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy or Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell when they accepted the medal.
During Congressional Gold Medal ceremony for Jan. 6 police, representatives of those receiving awards shake hands with Schumer then walk past McConnell and McCarthy. pic.twitter.com/YGjKXRGtiZ
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) December 6, 2022