Manuel J. Retureta, a high-powered Washington defense attorney who previously represented a former president of Honduras and Colombian warlord, has taken over the case of an Alabama man who parked his truck full of firearms and explosives near the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, he told a federal judge Wednesday.
Mr. Retureta will take control of the defense of Lonnie Coffman from the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Federal prosecutors have charged Mr. Coffman with 17 separate charges after his arrest on Jan. 6. His truck filled with Molotov cocktails and firearms also included “concerning” handwritten notes about a federal judge appointed by President Obama and Rep. Andre Carson, Indiana Democrat, according to court documents.
While Mr. Coffman, 70, was arrested on the same day a violent mob supporting President Trump stormed the U.S Capitol, he is not accused of participating in the riot.
All told, Mr. Coffman had five illegal firearms — two pistols, one revolver, an AR-15 rifle and shotgun — in addition to the Molotov cocktails and a “large-capacity ammo feeding device.”
At a hearing Wednesday, Mr. Retureta asked the court for an additional 30 days to get up to speed on the case.
Mr. Retureta’s former clients include Rafael Callejas, the former president of Honduras who pleaded guilty in an international soccer bribery scandal and a Colombian warlord who fought extradition back to his home country after serving a lengthy drug sentence in the United States.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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