After the violence from brainwashed Trump supporters in the Capitol on Wednesday, the FBI is asking for help identfying the instigators behind the failed insurrection.
In a statement issued on the agency's website, the FBI asked for any information that could assist in "identifying individuals who are actively instigating violence in Washington, D.C." The FBI is currently accepting tips and media that depict the violence in and around the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, and has asked anyone who might have witnessed "unlawful violent actions" to submit any relevant information, photos, or videos.
"Our goal is to preserve the public's constitutional right to protect by protecting everyone from violence and other criminal activity," the statement concludes.
CNN reports, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the Trump supporters included notable conspiracy theorists and far-right extremists. Perhaps one of the most notable is Jake Angeli, who has been called the "QAnon Shaman" by his smooth-brained followers. Photos of him holding an American flag while donning a painted face, fur hat, and a helmet with horns quickly circulated social media as the events began to unfold.
Some of Angeli's posts on Facebook indicate he might have been trying to instigate political violence, with one meme reading, "we shall have no real hope to survive the enemies arranged against us until we hang the traitors lurking among us." On Wednesday, Trump supporters had been filmed chanting "traitor" at both police and Republican lawmakers. Angeli was among many of the individuals present waving QAnon flags or clothing.
Proud Boys Hawaii founder Nick Ochs was also present, tweeting a photo of him smoking in the Capitol Building as the chaos unfolded.
"We didn't have to break in, I just walked in and filmed," he told CNN. "There were thousands of people in there, they had no control of the situation. I didn't get stopped or questioned."
Ochs was also joined by far-right activist Tim Gionet, known more commonly as extremist chud "Baked Alaska," who streamed himself inside the building for almost half an hour. He was among those who attended the infamous 2017 "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottlesville, Virginia, which also featured prominent displays of white supremacy and ended in fatal violence.
A company in Maryland, Navistar Direct Marketing, announced it fired an employee who was photographed partaking in what it called the “security breach” at the Capitol—and he was evidently wearing his work badge while doing it:
As the dust settles on the events of Wednesday, Donald Trump issued a statement saying there will be an "orderly transition" to a Biden presidency. Prior to the statement, Trump refused to concede and even opnely sympathized with those who broke into the Capitol. He said in a since-deleted video that he "loves" his delusional supporters, and the "very special" people who took to the Capitol should "go home in peace."
52 people were arrested, two pipe bombs were recovered, and four died during the MAGA mob's invasion of the Capitol.
