The crowd of Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol last week, according to recent court documents, planned to “capture and kill” elected officials.
Investigators believe there was a much more organized attempt underway, according to prosecutors who filed a motion late Thursday in the case of suspect Jacob Chansley, who was painted shirtless with his face painted and recorded at the riot, with a fur hat with horns, carrying an American flag on a wooden pole, on which officials identified a spear.
In their submission, prosecutors write that after Chansley climbed to the scene where Vice President Mike Pence was chairing moments earlier, he wrote a threatening note to Pence: “It’s just a matter of time, justice comes.”
“Strong evidence, including Chansley’s own words and actions at the Capitol, supports the intent of the Capitol rioters to capture and kill elected officials in the US government,” prosecutors wrote in their memo, urging the judge to Chansley to keep behind bars.
Pence and congressional leaders were brought out of the room by the Secret Service and the U.S. Capitol Police before the rioters stormed the room.
The FBI is investigating whether one of the rioters planned to kidnap members of Congress and hold them hostage, especially paying attention to the men seen wearing plastic handcuffs with zippers and pepper spray. Prosecutors accuse a former Air Force officer of wearing plastic shackles with zippers because he intended to ‘take hostages’.
But so far the Justice Department has not released any specific evidence of conspiracies in public.
But alleged insurgents claim it was a spontaneous outburst of anger over the election and loss of President Trump. U.S. District Attorney Mike Sherwin told reporters Friday that his office has so far found “no direct evidence at this stage of attempted murder-capture and assassination.”
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Chansley “had nothing but peaceful intentions” when he entered the Capitol building on January 6, his attorney, Al Watkins, told Fox News on Friday.
“He was without a bulletproof vest,” Watkins said in a text message. “He had nothing but his bullhorn. He wanted to make his voice heard. ‘
A detention hearing is planned in Chansley’s case for later Friday. Watkins said his client has no criminal record.
Watkins insisted on Fox News that the spear “was to hold the flag” and that he could not “easily cause damage”.
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Chansley, who calls himself the “QAnon Shaman” and has long been a contestant at Trump rallies, handed himself over to the FBI field office in Phoenix on Saturday.
QAnon is an apocalyptic and intricate conspiracy theory widely disseminated by the internet and promoted by some right-wing extremists.
Chansley told investigators he came to the Capitol “at the request of the president that all ‘patriots’ should come to DC on January 6, 2021.” In an indictment of accused Tuesday in Washington, he is charged with civil disorder, obstruction of an official process, disorderly conduct in a restricted building, and protest in a Capitol building.
Watkins told Fox News he asked Trump to forgive Chansley because his client believes he was “called to come to DC” to support the president.
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“And to help the president save our country – these people really believed it,” Watkins continued. “And they had reason to do so. They have the right to rely on the words of their president.”
He admitted that the pardon would probably not be granted.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.