A 31-year-old Lakeland woman was arrested at her home in Lakeland’s Christina Chase neighborhood Tuesday morning by FBI agents and charged with obstruction and disorderly conduct involving the Jan. 6 intrusion into the U.S. Capitol.

Corrine Lee Montoni was arrested after a search warrant was issued; electronic devices taken from her home led to her arrest, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Scruggs.

Montoni had planned to turn herself in to authorities but wasn’t allowed to, according to her attorney, Paul Showalter of Tampa, who told reporters he and Montoni had been negotiating with federal authorities.

Montoni is charged with:

  • Obstruction of an official proceeding
  • Entering and remaining; Disorderly and disruptive conduct in restricted building or grounds
  • Disorderly conduct; Parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building
  • Aiding and abetting the commission of these offenses against the United States

The criminal complaint detailing the charges have not been made available yet.

At a first appearance hearing in Tampa federal court Tuesday, U.S. Magistrate Anthony Porcelli released Montoni on a $25,000 signature bond and required to surrender her passport and firearms.

Her travel is restricted to the 35-county federal Middle District of Florida and she may also travel to Washington, D.C., for court proceedings.

She is scheduled to appear before a federal judge via Zoom at 1 p.m. next Monday.

“We have been in ongoing talks with the Justice Department regarding the government’s allegations,” Showalter told The Ledger in an email. “We stand with Ms. Montoni to help her through this difficult time. Please respect her privacy, the judicial process and her Constitutional presumption of innocence.”

More than 270 people — at least 20 of them from Florida — have been charged with crimes related to the storming of the Capitol by people trying to halt the electoral count that confirmed Joe Biden as president.

Montoni’s LinkedIn profile lists her as a freelance graphic designer and social media marketer who founded a social media brand called The Sociallect.

The Sociallect’s Instagram page was last updated in January 2018. Its website is currently offline, but an archived version shows that the content was about movies and music — Star Wars, Thor, Papa Roach, Warped Tour — not politics.

On LinkedIn, Montoni listed herself as manager of Dark Summer, a Lakeland metal band. At her court hearing Tuesday, she wore all black, including a sweatshirt from Jacksonville punk band Yellowcard.

She received a bachelor’s degree in music production from Full Sail University in 2014, according to her LinkedIn profile. Interests she lists on LinkedIn revolve around mainstream entertainment brands, not politics.

An article in The Ledger written yesterday mentions content on Montoni’s personal Facebook and Instagram pages. Those pages appear to have been disabled.

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Barry Friedman founded Lkldnow.com in 2015 as the culmination of a career in print and digital journalism. Since 1982, he has used the tools of reporting, editing and content curation to help people in Lakeland understand their community better.

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