Was Michal Stenger, the Senate sergeant-at-arms, murdered after saying the violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, was an inside job? No, that's not true: Stenger resigned after the January 6 riot, as did other officials who were in charge of security. He died at age 71, on June 27, 2022.
The claim appears in a doctored photograph of Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide in the Trump administration, who testified at the House January 6 committee hearings. In a Facebook post published on July 12, 2022, Hutchinson is holding up a white piece of paper that appears to read :
I AM A DISTRACTION BECAUSE WE MURDERED THE SERGEANT AT ARMES WHO SAID JAN 6 WAS AN INSIDE JOB
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Wed Jul 13 21:06:11 2022 UTC)
The doctored photo has been taken from a copyrighted photo of her testimony. The authentic photo is below:
(Source: New York Magazine screenshot taken on Wed Jul 13 20:20:28 2022 UTC)
According to longtime congressional correspondent Chad Pergram at Fox News, "Stenger had been suffering from cancer."
NBC News reported that Stenger's death was not considered suspicious:
Stenger's cause of death is not yet known. U.S. Capitol Police declined to comment. The medical examiner in Virginia did not handle his death, a spokesman said, indicating it was not considered suspicious.
Fox News reported that Stenger had cancer.
Lead Stories has reached out to officials at the Senate sergeant-at-arms office in Washington, D.C., and will update accordingly.
