Unlike the MAGA stories of people dying of COVID, these ones never get old. Some of these people you can sort of see why they would expect to go home in the evening and never face repercussions. Perhaps if they just got in the building when it was already opened and then ran up and down the hall, perhaps, you can see why they would believe they’d just be “protesters.”
And then there are some that had to know beforehand they were committing serious crimes and either relied upon the sheer volume of people or Trump getting them out of trouble.
The guy below is of the second group. It is damned serious. According to NBC4 from Houston:
Authorities say Andrew Quentin Taake, 32, flew to Washington D.C. on January 5 to participate in a rally. One day later, he allegedly joined pro-Trump extremists and stormed the U.S. Capitol.
As he attempted to force his way inside, Taake allegedly pepper-sprayed multiple officers who had formed a barricade out of bike racks. About 30 minutes later, Taake reemerged from the crowd of rioters and allegedly began striking officers with what appeared to be a whip-like weapon, according to court documents.
The FBI says the alleged assaults were captured by body-worn cameras. Additionally, surveillance video appears to show Taake wandering inside the Capitol building while holding the whip-like weapon in his hand.
Days after the attack, an unnamed tipster told federal investigators that Taake had shared details about his participation in the riot via a dating app called Bumble, according to court documents.
According to court filings from prosecutors, the metal whip carried by Taake is similar to this model ==> pic.twitter.com/ql3nNGObZZ [1]
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) July 23, 2021 [2]
We cannot know whether the “days after the attack” and seven-month intervening period was due to finite resources within the FBI or just what happened. All we know is that it is best that this guy get serious prison time. Try attacking a police officer on the street giving someone a ticket with pepper spray and a whip, see what happens. Actually, don’t do that. Police need reform, but most are just people, with families and all that.
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Peace, y’all
Jason
[email protected] and on Twitter @JasonMiciak