Feds Back Off Claim That Capitol Rioters Intended To ‘Capture And Assassinate Elected Officials’
On Friday, federal prosecutors backed off their claim that the government had “strong evidence” that showed the unruly mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last week intended “to capture and assassinate elected officials.”
The initial allegation was made in a court filing supporting the detention of Jacob Anthony Chansley, also known as Jake Angeli, as he awaits trial. The 33-year-old Arizona man reportedly calls himself “QAnon Shaman.” The Department of Justice identified him as “one of the leaders and mascots of QAnon,” which prosecutors
described as a group that “preaches debunked and fictitious anti-government conspiracy theories that a deep state is out to take down the current administration.”
The Washington Post
reported, however, that Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Allison later asked that the line alleging rioters sought “to capture and assassinate elected officials” be stricken from the record. Allison said it “may very well be appropriate at a trial” but could “mislead the court by discussing the strength of any specific evidence” related to Chansley’s intentions.
Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael Sherwin, the head of the investigation, had
clarified earlier on Friday that there was “no direct evidence at this point of kill-capture teams and assassination.”
Feds Back Off Claim That Capitol Rioters Intended To ‘Capture And Assassinate Elected Officials’