Houston officer accused of entering Capitol during riot asks for privacy

HOUSTON – A Houston police officer accused of entering the U.S. Capitol during last weeks’ riot asked for privacy Thursday.

Officer Tam Pham, an 18-year veteran of the Houston Police Department, resigned Thursday morning.

Pham briefly spoke to the media when he arrived home Thursday afternoon.

“Please, just give my family privacy,” Pham said. “It’s a really difficult time.”

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said Wednesday that Pham attended the rally hosted by President Donald Trump in Washington last week and then “penetrated” the Capitol building during a riot that left five people dead.

Acevedo said he was “highly confident” that Pham will face federal charges in connection with the accusations and that he had given the information he gathered to the FBI.

“There is no excuse for criminal activity, especially from a police officer,” Acevedo said. “I can’t tell you the anger I feel at the thought of a police officer and other police officers thinking they get to go storm the Capitol or members of the military of the Secret Service.”

Pham told the Houston Chronicle that he was only there to take pictures.


About the Author:

Aaron Barker has been a senior digital editor at KPRC 2 since 2016. As a meteorologist, he specializes in stories about the weather. He has covered Hurricane Harvey, the Astros first World Series win, the Santa Fe High School shooting, the ITC fire and Tropical Storm Imelda.