- The Federal Bureau of Investigation is using digital posters at bus stops in Washington, DC, as part of its investigation into the deadly US Capitol insurrection on Wednesday.
- Photos of the posters, displayed on large displays at DC bus stops, were shared on Twitter by several journalists.
- The agency is seeking help to identify pro-Trump protesters who broke into the building during the violent uprising that left five people dead.
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The Federal Bureau of Investigation is using digital signs at bus stops in Washington, DC, to ask the public for help in identifying the people who participated in the deadly US Capitol insurrection on Wednesday.
Reporters, including CNN’s Jim Acosta, and HuffPost’s Ryan J. Reilly, shared images of some of them on Twitter, as The Hill first noticed on Saturday.
—Jim Acosta (@Acosta) January 9, 2021
—Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) January 9, 2021
The signs include photos of individuals seen in Wednesday’s riot. They ask anyone with information about the insurrection or the people in the photos to contact the FBI’s DC office or the city’s Metropolitan Police Department.
One person was shot and killed by the police during the riot earlier this week. Three other people suffered medical emergencies during the insurrection and died as a result. Brian Sicknick, a 42-year-old Capitol Police officer, was also killed after being hit in the head by a fire extinguisher, bringing the death toll on Wednesday to five.
Read More: Secret service experts are speculating in group chats about how Trump could be removed from the White House if he doesn’t move on the day of his inauguration.
Supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the building after the president encouraged them to go to Washington on January 6 to protest Congress’s certification of the Electoral College vote.
A billboard at a bus stop on Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest announces a message from the Federal Bureau of Investigation seeking information related to violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 9, 2021 in Washington, DC.
Al Drago / Getty Images
In the months following his defeat by President-elect Joe Biden, Trump regularly made false and baseless allegations about widespread electoral fraud to explain his defeat to supporters. He and his allies were unable to substantiate the allegations and lost dozens of lawsuits that were trying to overturn the election results.
But his supporters came to Washington anyway in a violent and last-minute maneuver to prevent Congress from formally claiming Biden as the winner of the presidential election.
After Trump addressed his supporters near the White House on Wednesday, thousands of them marched to the Capitol building, where many invaded, dominating the Capitol Police. Those who broke into vandalized Congress offices, posed for photos in the Senate chamber, stole the offices and desecrated the building.
Authorities have already arrested and charged some of the individuals present at the uprising on Wednesday. In an earlier statement, the FBI said it was calling on the public to help it identify those involved.
“If you have witnessed unlawful violent actions, we ask that you send any information, photos or videos that may be relevant,” said the FBI in a statement on its website requesting information.
He continued: “Our aim is to preserve the public’s constitutional right to protest, protecting everyone from violence and other criminal activities.”