Three weeks before thousands of pro-Trump protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol and rioted, causing the deaths of five people, including a police officer, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) — who had not even been sworn in yet as a member of Congress — took several guests on a late-night tour of the Capitol, according to a report from Salon.

As Salon’s Zachary Petrizzo reports, the tour conducted by Boebert raises all sorts of red flags:

“There are several unanswered questions about this visit, which appears to have violated normal Capitol protocol in various ways. It’s not clear who authorized it, since Boebert was not yet a member of Congress and had no official standing in D.C. It’s perhaps even stranger that it occurred on a Saturday night, when the Capitol complex is closed. Later, in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack, Boebert repeatedly denied rumors that she had offered ‘reconnaissance tours’ to would-be rioters shortly before that event. But her ambiguous comments appeared to avoid any specific discussion of this unexplained December tour.”

Boebert and her guests had access to many areas of Capitol building, including:

  •  The staircase in the Senate’s empty Brumidi Corridors
  •  Senate room S-127
  • The Senate briefing room
  • The Capitol Rotunda

Oddly, a Capitol Police officer is seen in a photo with Boebert’s mother and son at the top of the Capitol Dome.

Boebert has been accused of aiding the the Jan. 6 rioters, most notably by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), who alleges that the Colorado Republican was involved in “instigating and aiding the violent riot at the Capitol Building.” In response, Boebert claimed she had never given tours to anyone but her family during the 117th Congress, but her denial doesn’t address the matter of the tour on Dec. 12, 2020, which would have been the 116th Congress:

“Her choice of words was notably specific, and potentially significant: ‘I haven’t given a tour of the U.S. Capitol in the 117th Congress to anyone but family,’ she said, specifically not addressing the unauthorized tour she seems to have given during the 116th Congress.”

One thing seems certain regarding the Dec. 12 late-night tour Boebert was part of: It will more than likely earn her a subpoena for testimony before the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection, and it could also lead to criminal charges against the congresswoman.

Featured Image Via NBC News