US Capitol Riot

Teenager, Arrested in Connection With Capitol Riot, Assaulted by Inmate

Bruno Cua, who has also tested positive for COVID-19, wants to be released from custody

In this Jan. 6, 2021, file photo, protesters seen all over Capitol building where pro-Trump supporters riot and breached the Capitol. Rioters broke windows and breached the Capitol building in an attempt to overthrow the results of the 2020 election.
Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

An 18-year-old charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was punched by a fellow inmate while in federal custody, NBC News reports. Bruno Joseph Cua has also tested positive for COVID-19.

Defense attorney William Zapf is asking for Cua to be released from the Grady County Jail in Oklahoma, where he has largely been in solitary confinement since he was arrested Feb. 5, according to court filings.

"Mr. Cua was assaulted and then threatened by a fellow inmate over this past weekend," Zapf wrote. "We understand that the inmate struck Mr. Cua in the face with his open hand, injuring his nose, over the use of the phone, and then threatened him regarding the incident."

On Saturday, a COVID-19 test for Cua came back positive, Zapf said. His attorneys argued that he is ready to safely self-quarantine, perhaps at a hotel, if he is released.

Read the full story on NBCNews.com

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