An Arizona man who was allegedly photographed wearing a costume with a painted face and a fur hat topped by horns during last week’s mayhem at the US Capitol building has been taken into custody, officials said.
Jacob Anthony Chansley, more commonly known as Jake Angeli, had become a staple in his costume at rallies in favour of Donald Trump protests across the country.
He is charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds in Washington, DC.
Chansley is among dozens of people arrested in the wake of the Capitol invasion by a large mob of supporters enraged over Mr Trump’s election loss who forced legislators to halt their voting to affirm president-elect Joe Biden’s victory and go into hiding for hours.
Separately, the man allegedly photographed grinning as he carried away US house speaker Nancy Pelosi’s lectern has also been charged following the rioting that left five people dead.
Adam Johnson, 36, of Parrish, Florida, was arrested on Friday night on a federal warrant and is being held without bail in Pinellas County, Florida, according to jail records.
Johnson is a married father-of-five who was quickly identified on social media by local residents as the man in a photo smiling as he walked through the Capitol rotunda carrying Ms Pelosi’s lectern, The Bradenton Herald reported.
He was charged with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, one count of theft of government property and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
Before being deleted or taken down, Johnson posted on social media that he was in Washington, DC, during Wednesday’s riot. His content included disparaging comments about the Black Lives Matter movement, according to The Bradenton Herald.
The rioters took over the house and senate chambers and smashed windows on Wednesday. Some waved Confederate flags.
By Saturday, prosecutors had filed 17 cases in federal district court and 40 others in the District of Columbia Superior Court for a variety of offences, ranging from assaulting police officers to entering restricted areas of the US Capitol, stealing federal property and threatening members of congress.
Prosecutors said additional cases remained under seal, dozens of other people were being sought by federal agents and the US attorney in Washington vowed that “all options were on the table” for charges, including possibly sedition.
