Republicans keep arguing that there were no firearms used in the January 6th attack, but that assertion just got shot down.
One of Donald Trump’s supporters just got charged for discharging his weapon during the assault on the Capitol on January 6th, 2021. In direct contrast to what Trump’s defenders have claimed, that’s a gun being fired during the riot — so much for that peaceful tourist visit.
John Emanuel Banuelos had previously been arrested for his role in the Capitol attack, and previous information had shown him “flashing his gun” while pushing at officers, as well as using a “finger gun” to “simulate firing” at police. Now it’s been revealed that he fired his real one, as well.
Social media users calling themselves “sedition hunters” spotted a newly-uploaded video that appeared to show a rioter firing his gun while hanging off of scaffolding at the Capitol. This information was submitted to federal investigators, and new charges followed. NBC reports:
“Last month, Jan. 6 rioter Derrick Evans, who is now running in a Republican House primary in West Virginia, published previously unseen video that appeared to show that Banuelos actually fired his weapon twice outside the Capitol that day. Online “sedition hunters” who have aided the FBI in hundreds of arrests of Capitol rioters — and who first sent Banuelos’ name to the FBI in February 2021 — quickly surfaced additional footage that confirmed that Banuelos was the man who appeared to have fired the weapon.”
More of Banuelos’ gun-centric behavior, specifically on social media, was helpful in identifying him and bringing about an arrest. In sworn testimony an FBI Special Agent (with his name redacted) shared that he had previously interviewed the Trump supporter in a mostly-unrelated case.
Apparently, Banuelos posted a video that “appears to show Banuelos racking the slide of a semi-automatic weapon” as a reply to another account that had posted an image of his FBI poster. Thus, an interview ensued, in which Banuelos denied trying to threaten anyone and claimed the post used AI or a fake weapon. According to the FBI agent:
“During the interview of BANUELOS on January 19, 2024, your affiant had the opportunity to observe his build and facial features. Based on my review of the images and videos from January 6 and the time spent interviewing BANUELOS, I can identify BANUELOS as the individual in images 1-13.”
The images include the one in which someone — allegedly Banuelos — hangs off a scaffolding and holds a firearm in the air, and the one showing the weapon apparently jammed into his waistband, as well as the “finger-gun” image and others.
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