Yogananda Pittman, acting chief of the Capitol Police, apologized to lawmakers on Tuesday for her agency’s security breakdowns during the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.
The New York Times said her comments came during a meeting with the House Appropriations Committee, which oversees funding for the department.
"I am here to offer my sincerest apologies on behalf of the department," said Pittman, who was not acting police chief during the riot.
She acknowledged her department “should have been more prepared for this attack.”
Pittman said the department was aware militia groups and white supremacists would be taking part in the protest.
“We also knew that some of these participants were intending to bring firearms and other weapons to the event,” she said. “We knew that there was a strong potential for violence and that Congress was the target. The department prepared in order to meet these challenges, but we did not do enough.”
She said 1,200 police officers had been working onsite but were no match for “the tens of thousands of insurrectionists.”
Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund resigned after he was sharply criticized by lawmakers in the immediate aftermath of the siege at the Capitol.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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