According to the Justice Department, Jake Angeli, who was photographed Wednesday while standing shirtless in the Senate chamber, was wearing a hat with a painted face.
“Jacob Anthony Chansley, aka Jake Angeli, of Arizona, is charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or site without lawful authority, and for violent trespassing and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds,” the department said. of justice said in a statement.
‘It is alleged that Chansley was identified as the man seen in media coverage entering the Capitol building, dressed in horns, wearing a bearskin headdress, a red, white and blue face paint, a shirtless and brown pants, ‘he said. “This person was carrying a spear about 6 feet long, with an American flag tied just below the blade.”
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Angeli has appeared at several pro-Trump rallies in Pheonix, Arizona and is widely known as the “QAnon Shaman, “according to the CBS affiliate KPHO. He also appeared at the Arizona rallies to protest the strike of businesses due to COVID-19, according to the Arizona Republic.
In a previous interview with the Republic, Angeli said he uses the hat and painted face to attract attention so he can better share his beliefs about QAnon.
“The snowball is rolling and it’s just getting bigger,” Angeli told a rally in February 2020, according to the newspaper. “We are the mainstream now.”
Angeli is one of many pro-Trump rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, forcing lawmakers to evacuate while counting votes for Electoral College. The vast majority of the rioters were able to leave without being arrested, forcing the FBI to launch a nationwide hunt for those involved in the assault.
Many have already been identified from photos or videos taken during the siege, which caused a series of arrests and even shootings. The Arkansas government, pictured with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been arrested, authorities said, as did a West Virginia lawmaker who filmed himself storming the Capitol.
Another man who was photographed during the riot smiling and waving while carrying House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was also charged. The photo went viral, and authorities quickly identified him as Adam Johnson, 36, a resident of Parrish, Florida.
“Just because you left the DC region, you can still expect a knock on the door when we find out you were part of the criminal activities at the Capitol,” said Steven D’Antuono of the FBI’s field office in Washington. .
Fifteen people have been charged at the federal level, and officials say 40 others have been charged in the DC Superior Court.