Bob’s Burgers actor Jay Johnston arrested for Capitol riot involvement
According to court documents, actor and writer Jay Johnston has been arrested by the Department of Justice and charged for his connection with the Capitol riot that occurred on January 6th, 2021.
After being apprehended on Wednesday in California, Johnson was formally charged with obstructing legal officers during a civil disorder along with several other misdemeanour offences. His implication in the riots and his subsequent arrest came after the FBI tweeted a picture of him, then unknown, asking if anyone could identify the suspect.
The actor was caught on multiple cameras during the incident, including CCTV footage, police body-cam images and recordings from bystanders on their phones. After the FBI appeal for information, the internet was quick to identify Johnson, who is known for acting in ten episodes of Arrested Development and voicing a character on Bob’s Burgers.
After 43 episodes on the latter show, Johnson was fired in December 2021 once his culpability had been made clear. Court documents have subsequently revealed the precise nature of his involvement with the January 2021 attacks.
It’s claimed that Johnston led a group of rioters to the upper west tunnel and moved toward the “front line of rioters confronting the police who were defending the entrance” to the Capitol. After stealing a riot shield from Capitol Police, he helped create a “shield wall” which facilitated a group assault against a line of officers.
The riots occurred following the defeat of Donal Trump in the 2020 elections, where an angry mob of his devout supporters swarmed the United States Capitol Building in Washington, DC and attacked police and civilians. It is widely believed that Trump incited this public dissent, for which many believe the former President himself should be charged.
Johnson’s arrest comes in the wake of many other arrests; to date, over 1000 people have been arrested and charged with federal crimes, some of which have already been convicted of serious charges of seditious conspiracy — a crime against authority.
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