'Petulant' Capitol rioter ordered back to jail after sending thousands of texts to his wife -- who was a potential witness

A South Carolina man charged for his role on the Capitol riot has been ordered to be held in jail for witness tampering -- the witness being his estranged wife, The Post and Courier reports.

William Robert Norwood III's wife was a potential government witness and he was ordered not to contact her, but he sent her thousands of text messages anyway. As The Post and Courier points out, Norwood will be held pending trial at a jail in the District of Columbia.

Magistrate Judge Kevin McDonald found Norwood “attempted to obstruct justice" by texting his wife, who was reportedly with him in D.C. on Jan. 6. He also made numerous phone calls to her. In one message, he asked her to invoke “spousal privilege” so she wouldn’t testify against him.

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“Norwood’s messages to his estranged wife are harassing, abusive, petulant, and occasionally threatening,” Justice Department lawyers wrote. According to McDonald, the text demonstrated that he "presents a danger" to his wife.

"Norwood faces seven federal charges," The Post and Courier reports. "He was arrested by FBI agents after a family member shared screenshots of messages in which he bragged about assaulting police officers and storming the Capitol. Agents found a Capitol Police riot shield and helmet in Norwood’s storage unit, which he said he picked up from a pile outside the Capitol."

Read the full report over at The Post and Courier.

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