They posted that they were hacking the Capitol on Facebook. They streamed live on YouTube and told Instagram stories of their rowdy comrades when they invaded.
While the FBI continues to arrest protesters who invaded the United States Capitol on January 6 to try to prevent President-elect Joe Biden from taking office last week, he is discovering that several of them appear to have openly confessed to crimes on open social media, a review of court documents shows.
Capitol Police have been severely criticized for not being prepared to deal with the number of protesters who oppressed and invaded Congressional corridors, leaving the FBI to track down many of them after they left the scene.
But while the federal police have significant legal and technical resources at their disposal – such as the ability to obtain warrants for telephone companies or technology to see which phones were in an area at a specific time, for example – this proved unnecessary for many people who have been accused so far.
Many were documented by journalists and then easily identified online. Adam Johnson, accused of theft of government property after a Getty photo of him smiling while taking the pulpit of Mayor Nancy Pelosi went viral, also posted a photo of him that day on his Facebook account. Wearing the same clothes and a distinctive hat, in front of a sign that says “Closed for all tours”, Johnson put the caption for the photo “No”.
Derrick Evans, a self-proclaimed conservative activist who was recently elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates, but resigned before the start of his first session, broadcast himself shouting “Derrick Evans is on Capitol Hill!” Although Evans deleted the video, a local reporter already recorded and soon tweeted.
Selfies inside the Capitol were commonplace, and several people who took them were accused of intentionally entering restricted land or disorderly conduct on Capitol land.
Kash Lee Hill posted a photo, already removed, on his public Facebook account that shows him standing on a pedestal next to a statue of Charles Aycock, a former North Carolina governor and white supremacist. The state tried to replace the statue with one of the late televangelist Billy Graham. “The day we let traitors who constantly pressure the division in OUR country to know that we have finished their games”, said Hill’s caption.
Thomas Robertson, an officer at the Rocky Mount Police Department in Virginia, took a photo of himself with colleague Jacob Fracker in front of a marble statue. Fracker posted on Facebook that he did not apologize for the photo.
“Lol to anyone who is possibly concerned about my picture walking around…. sorry, i hate freedom? “After a shrunken emoji, Robertson wrote” it’s not like I did anything illegal “.
Jenny Cudd, who wore a President Donald Trump flag as a cape for the Capitol, described on Facebook Live that she was part of a crowd that forced her into the building.
“We just push, push and push and shout go and shout attack. We just pushed and pushed, and we succeeded, “said Cudd, adding later” We broke the door to Nancy Pelosi’s office. “
A small army of online detectives is actively chasing images from Jan. 6 to identify protesters, and the FBI, which is still soliciting tips from the public, received more than 126,000 digital media tips about the incident, an agency spokesman said. On thursday .
But this was not necessary for some suspects. Many came to the Capitol in costumes that made them easily recognizable. Jacob Chansley, indicted on six counts, stood out in photos with his face painting of the American flag, naked torso and horned skin headdress. He was already well known to researchers and journalists who cover extremism because that was his “QAnon Shaman” costume at Trump rallies and anti-Black Lives Matter protests.
Robert Packer shocked many Americans with his black “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt, but this was not the first time he wore it. Court documents show that someone linked to a convenience store in Packer, Newport News, Virginia, recognized him as a regular customer. The person gave the FBI pictures from the surveillance cameras at Packer’s store wearing the same sweatshirt in the store, as well as from his car.
Olympic gold medalist swimmer Klete Keller, accused of intentionally entering or remaining in restricted areas, donned her US Team jacket to go to the Capitol.
Larry Brock, a decorated Air Force Combat veteran, was easily recognizable to those who knew him when he wore his uniform, including medals and helmet, while carrying zippered handcuffs on the Senate floor.
“I just know that when I saw that this was happening, I was scared that he was there,” said Brock’s ex-wife on a call to the FBI. “I think you already know he was there. It’s such a good picture of him and I recognize his patch. “
Investigators still used traditional warrants to seal their cases against protesters, however. In one case, a warrant for a suspect’s social media account showed that he appeared to confess. Aaron Mostofsky, the son of a Brooklyn judge accused of stealing government property, became a meme when a photo of him wearing a sewn fur costume and police vest went viral.
A friend sent a message to Mostofsky with a version of the meme, with the caption “Imagine getting out of 10 doses of acid and you look around and you’re at the U.S. Capitol like shit” to your Instagram account, @aaron_mostofsky_official. “
“You are famous,” said the friend.
“Unfortunately, IK,” replied Mostofsky.