A right-wing video blogger who once filmed a music video dedicated to law enforcement was arrested by the FBI on Saturday after it was broadcast live, relaxing in the Capitol, in the middle of the January 6 insurrection.
In a criminal complaint released Saturday, the Justice Department said it had arrested Anthime Joseph Gionet, the far-right activist better known as “Baked Alaska,” on charges of violent entry and disorderly conduct on the Chapter.
Gionet, who tested positive for COVID-19 just days before the riot and is currently facing unrelated charges of allegedly spraying peppers with a bouncer last year, traveled to DC this month for the “Stop The Steal” events. ”. As the rioters stormed Congress, Gionet, a former BuzzFeed employee who became a pro-Trump far-right activist, aired live at the event on DLive, a popular video platform that eventually eliminated the stream.
As the rioters stormed Congress, Gionet, a former BuzzFeed employee, became a far-right, pro-Trump activist, broadcast live on DLive, a popular video platform that eventually eliminated the stream.
But, like many outrages last week, his Capitol holiday posts may return to haunt him. Much of the evidence against Gionet presented in the statement he arrested on Saturday is directly attributed to his own 27-minute broadcast.
The defendant can be heard noting “the child of 1776”, “I will not leave boys, do not worry”, the statement on his own responsibility say. “At minute 2:52 of the YouTube video, the defendant, who broadcasts the event live from the device, turns the phone to show his face and is clearly identifiable.”
At one point, Gionet was filmed entering an office, picking up a phone and making an “alleged phone call with U.S. Senate staff.”
Later in the video, he walked into another office, sat down on a couch, and set his feet on a table. “The defendant encourages others not to break anything,” the statement added.
VICE reported earlier this week that the FBI was using live coverage of the Gionet riot to find and track other participants. The agency released several notifications last week seeking information about individuals in the pro-Trump crowd, which included images taken directly from the Baked Alaska video.
On Friday, Daniel Goodwyn, a proud “self-proclaimed” boy, was arrested by federal authorities who said in court records that he had been called by name in Gionet’s live stream.
Federal authorities say they have charged at least 100 people in the riots, including a Texas real estate agent who flew a private jet to DC, a former Latin Kings gangster, a peyote-loving “QAnon Shaman” and a woman who was taken out by a high school friend after pinching the identification plate of the President of the Chamber Nancy Pelosi.
The FBI also announced charges on Saturday against another man who allegedly assaulted the chapter.
Law enforcement officials said Jack Jesse Griffith, also known as Juan Bibiano, attended the event, citing his own posts on Facebook and Instagram, where he wrote “I even helped in the assault. [sic] the capital today, but it has made things worse. ”