Left: Jan. 6 defendant Mark Ibrahim (Department of Justice). Right: Donald Trump (NBC News/YouTube).
A former agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration who allegedly participated in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack tried using President-elect Donald Trump’s recent comments on NBC’s “Meet the Press” — about his plans to pardon rioters on his “first day” in office — to delay his upcoming trial, but to no avail.
Mark Sami Ibrahim, of Orange County, California, filed a motion to continue his federal case in Washington, D.C., on Sunday after Trump’s interview aired. Ibrahim, a former DEA special agent, is accused of being a Jan. 6 rioter who repeatedly displayed his government-issued firearm and badge while at the Capitol, according to the Department of Justice. He also allegedly asked a friend to take pictures of him during the attack, which were shared in a WhatsApp group chat with at least five other law enforcement officers.
His delay request was shot down by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly, with support from federal prosecutors.
“The Court is not inclined to continue the stipulated trial based on uncertain events that may or may not occur with respect to this specific Defendant,” Kelly, a Trump appointee, wrote in a minute order posted to the federal docket on Monday. Kelly ordered the stipulated trial to begin on its scheduled date: Jan. 23, 2025. In a stipulated trial — an option taken by multiple high-profile accused Jan. 6 rioters — the defendant and prosecutors agree to a set of facts that form the basis of the judge’s ultimate decision.
“Based on recent developments, Mr. Ibrahim is seeking to briefly continue the stipulated trial and the materials due date to sometime in February of 2025,” Ibrahim’s lawyer, Marina Medvin, wrote in the delay motion, which was filed the same day the interview aired.
“I’m going to be acting very quickly. First day. I’m looking first day,” Trump of the potential Jan. 6 pardons said during his “Meet the Press” appearance on Sunday. The president-elect vowed to probe each Jan. 6 criminal case individually in an effort to separate defendants who are “radical” and “crazy” from the ones who “had no choice.”
Trump has floated the idea of blanket pardons for insurrectionists in speeches and previous interviews.
“The defendant’s motion is based on speculation that he may benefit from future governmental changes or the possibility of clemency,” prosecutors said in an opposition, filed Monday. “His assumption is mere conjecture[.]”
Ibrahim has denied going inside the Capitol and insists he’s not a criminal. Several weeks prior to the 2021 siege, Ibrahim told the DEA that he planned to resign. He was on personal leave when everything happened, according to officials, and he allegedly traveled from California with a relative to attend the insurrection. Photos allegedly show him carrying a flag with the phrase “liberty or death” on it.
Ibrahim’s four-count indictment was trimmed down in October 2022, when Kelly ruled to dismiss a charge of making false statements after Medvin argued that Washington, D.C., was the wrong place to pursue it. The indictment still includes charges of entering restricted grounds with a dangerous weapon, injuries to property and bringing a firearm to Capitol grounds.
Attempts by Law&Crime to reach Medvin for comment have been unsuccessful.
