The US Department of Justice opened more than 80 criminal cases relating to violent civil unrest in the US Capitol on January 6.
US prosecutors now believe that supporters of President Donald Trump planned to “capture and murder” elected officials during their siege of the Capitol building last week, according to a new trial.
The file filed by Justice Department attorneys late Thursday related to the arrest of Jacob Chansley of Arizona, the QAnon conspiracy theorist, who was photographed with horns on Vice President Mike Pence’s desk in the Senate Chamber.
“Strong evidence, including Chansley’s own words and actions at the Capitol, supports that the intent of the Capitol rioters was to capture and murder elected officials in the United States government,” the prosecutor wrote.
The detention record, written by attorneys for the Arizona Department of Justice, goes into more detail about the FBI’s investigation into Chansley and reveals that he left a note for Pence warning that “it’s only a matter of time Justice is coming “.
A public defense attorney representing Chansley could not be immediately reached for comment. Chansley is due to appear in federal court on Friday.
The prosecution’s assessment comes as they and federal agents began to bring more serious charges related to violence in the Capitol, including the uncovering of cases against a man, retired firefighter Robert Sanford, on Thursday for putting a fire extinguisher on top of one The man threw a policeman and another, Peter Stager, who hit another policeman with a pole with an American flag.
In Chansley’s case, prosecutors said the charges include “actively participating in an insurgency attempting to violently overthrow the United States government” and warned that “the insurrection is ongoing” pending prosecution further Demonstrations prepared in Washington, DC and the state capitals.
They also suggested that he suffered from substance abuse and mental illness, and told the judge that he posed a serious aviation risk.
“Chansley has spoken openly about his belief that he is an alien, a higher being, and he is here on earth to ascend to another reality,” they wrote.
The Justice Department opened more than 80 criminal cases in the past week related to the violent riots in the U.S. Capitol, in which Trump’s supporters stormed the building, searched offices and, in some cases, attacked the police.
The filing gives further insight into the FBI’s investigation into the Day of Chaos, which brought elected officials to their knees for fear of their lives and at least five dead, including one police officer.
Many of the individuals charged so far have been easily tracked down by the FBI, which has more than 200 suspects, in large part thanks to videos and photos posted on social media.
Michael Sherwin, the acting U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, has said that while many of the initial charges may appear minor, he expects much more serious charges to be filed if the Justice Department continues its investigation.
In a bipartisan vote on Wednesday, Trump was charged with “inciting insurrection” by inducing large numbers of his supporters to march on Congress.
Central Washington, DC was on lockdown early Friday as more than 20,000 armed National Guard troops were mobilized after officials warned of the threat of further violence at Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20 and in state capitals.
Comments are closed.