More Capitol rioters in viral posts arrested
Federal agents arrested two more Capitol Hill rioters whose images had gone viral, of one carrying off the House speaker’s lectern and another who wore horns and a fur pelt, while a top Democratic lawmaker called on mobile carriers to preserve social media content related to the carnage.
Dozens of people have been charged following the storming of the Capitol on Wednesday, with the FBI asking the public to help identify participants, given the proliferation of images of the riots on the internet. Five people have died, including a police officer.
Jacob Anthony Chansley, who featured prominently on social media wearing horns, a fur pelt, face paint and brandishing a spear adorned with the U.S. flag, turned himself in to police, the Department of Justice said.
Chansley, also known as Jake Angeli, called the FBI’s Washington office on Thursday and later told agents “he came as part of a group effort with other ‘patriots’ from Arizona, at the request of the President that all ‘patriots’ come to D.C. on Jan. 6,” the DOJ said in a release.
Federal agents also arrested Adam Christian Johnson, whose photo as he smiled and waved as he carried off House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s lectern also went viral. Johnson, of Parrish, Fla., also streamed live video on Facebook of himself as he walked the halls of the Capitol, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
The video has been removed from online platforms and all of Johnson’s pages have been taken down.
On Saturday, Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat who is the incoming chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, wrote to the chief executives of 11 mobile carriers and social media companies, urging them to preserve content and associated meta-data connected to the riot, which erupted as lawmakers gathered to certify the election of Democratic President-elect Joe Biden.
In his letters, Warner emphasized how the rioters took time to document the event and share it through social media and text messages “to celebrate their disdain for our democratic process.”
Before his arrest, NBC network reported, Chansley gloated about how the crowd infiltrated the Capitol, forcing lawmakers to flee.
“The fact that we had a bunch of traitors in office, hunkered down, put on gas masks and retreat to their underground bunker, I consider that a win,” he said to NBC News.
Chansley faces several federal charges including violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
Media reports said Chansley had often been seen at rallies supporting Trump. Efforts by Reuters on Saturday to reach his relatives were unsuccessful, as were attempts to contact Johnson’s family.
It was unclear where Chansley was being held Saturday, or whether he or Johnson had legal representation.
Johnson, who has a first appearance in federal court today, is being charged out of Washington.
One man who was arrested in connection with the events at the Capitol and threats to lawmakers told FBI agents he arrived in Washington on Thursday, a day late for the rally, after being delayed en route in Ohio, federal court documents showed.
Cleveland Meredith was found with a Tavor X95 assault rifle, a Glock pistol, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.