Social media users shared online content suggesting that those who stormed the U.S. capital on January 6 were Antifa, not Trump supporters. Many use all the composition of photographs as alleged evidence, but examination of these images shows that they do not support this assertion. Meanwhile, the FBI said there was “no indication at the moment” that Antifa played a role in the mob that stormed the Capitol.
While it is impossible for Reuters to verify the identity of every person who took part in Wednesday’s siege, this article treats some of the key images posted on social media as false evidence that the rioters ‘undercover’ is.
Examples of posts that represent different men as evidence can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
Hundreds of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday in a stunning attempt to overthrow his election defeat. They fought the police in the corridors and delayed the certification of the election of Democratic President Joe Biden’s victory by hours (here).
The chaos took place after Trump – who before the election refused to commit himself to a peaceful transfer of power if he lost – addressed thousands of supporters near the White House and told them to march to the Capitol to vent their anger on to pronounce the voting process. He told his supporters to put pressure on their elected officials to reject the results and urge them to ‘fight’. (here)
MAN WITH FUR, HORNS AND PAINTED SPIRIT
Reuters Fact Check earlier rejected allegations that a man with fur and a hat with horns was a supporter of Black Lives Matter or ANTIFA.
Media, including AZ Central and Mashable, quickly identified the man as Jake Angeli (here, here). According to AZ Central, he was a “contest with political judges in Arizona over the past year.” Visible in an interview with the news office in May 2020. here , Angeli spoke in favor of President Donald Trump and his policies.
Visible in another video here , Can be seen as Angeli Trump and “Q” prize, a reference to the anonymous leader of QAnon, an intertwined series of conspiracy theories whose followers believe that President Trump secretly includes a cabal of child sex predators that prominent Democrats, Hollywood elite include. and allies of “deep state”.
Angeli’s own Facebook page, which was investigated by Reuters, included posts and photos indicating his support for QAnon and Donald Trump.
He has since been charged with knowingly entering or residing in any restricted building or site without lawful authority, and of violent trespassing and disorderly conduct on the Capitol site (here). The Department of Justice identified him as Jacob Anthony Chansley (also known as Jake Angeli).
MAN WITH THE HAND STATUS
Reuters Fact Check has previously denied the allegation that a man’s tattoo is proof that he is part of ANTIFA here.
Reports put an image of protesters in the Capitol building along with another image obtained by ‘phillyantifa.org’.
The Philly Antifa website (phillyantifa.org) does have a page with an image of a bearded man who shares certain characteristics with the person seen in the Capitol building. However, this page does not describe the man as an Antifa supporter. Instead, it is said that the image shows an individual belonging to a very different group that opposes Philly Antifa.
Reuters did not identify the person in the Capitol building. However, a comparison of tattooing on the right hand of both people indicates that they are not the same person (compare this picture from the Antifa website here with this AFP image here).
The tattoo seen on the other side of the man in the Capitol appears to be a symbol from a computer game (here) and not a hammer and sickle symbol as some reports suggest (here).
MAN ON PELOSI’S DESK
Another photo posted on social media shows a man with his feet on Nancy Pelosi’s desk. As the image of Getty began to circulate widely on January 6 (here, here, here ), New York Times reporter Matthew Rosenberg identified himself in a tweet as 60-year-old Richard “Bigo” Barnett of Gravette, Arkansas (here). He also has a video of Barnett (here).
Less than half an hour later, KNWA-TV, an NBC subsidiary in Northwest Arkansas, told KNWA-TV (here) that his team “immediately recognized” the man from an interview they conducted with Barnett during ‘ a “Stop the Steal” event hosted by Republicans from Benton County in November. .
NBC News reported that Barnett was arrested on Friday, January 8 (here). There is no evidence that he has any connection with Antifa.
FUR AND POLICE SHIELD
Another man shared in Facebook messages wears fur skins and wears a police badge and identifies himself as Aaron, a Brooklyn, New York resident. In a YouTube video filmed in the Capitol (here), the man says he ‘believes'[uitgegee het]that the election was stolen ‘.
Some outlets identified him as Aaron Mostofsky, son of a judge in the Brooklyn Supreme Court (here, here, here).
There is no evidence linking this man to Antifa, and his personal Facebook page, which has apparently now been removed, showed that he had content from Donald Trump, Jr. and Senator Ted Cruz, as well as Conservative commentators Laura Ingraham and Ben Shapiro. .
Asked if Aaron could be part of Antifa secrets, a source close to the Mostofsky family told Reuters in an email: ‘This is not true. What he recorded expresses his politics. ”
‘NO INDICATION’ OF ANTIFA INVOLVEMENT
There is no credible evidence to support the idea that Antifa supporters dressed as Trump supporters or that they led the riots or led them to the top.
“We have no indication of that yet,” said Steven D’Antuono, the assistant director of the FBI Washington Field Office, in response to a question as to whether there is evidence to support the allegations that violate U.S. violence. Capitol were ‘antifa infiltrators’ disguised as Trump supporters.
On the afternoon of January 8, Reuters surveyed the most designated chat rooms in an online blog forum popular with Trump supporters and found that a mix of narratives is being offered among this community. Some said ‘Patriots’, not Antifa, stormed the buildings, while others blamed the alleged Antifa infiltrators.
Reuters has since unmasked other Antifa-related misinformation since Wednesday, including that Antifa did not receive police guidance from the DC police after the protests (here), an Antifa confession (here) and news reports digitally (here).
VERDICT
Untrue. The images examined in this check indicate that Antifa supporters were present during the January 6 storm in the U.S. Capitol. However, there is no evidence that the individuals in the photos are linked to the Antifa movement. The FBI said there was no indication that Antifa had played a role in the mob storming the Capitol.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.