Rioters sought to ‘capture, assassinate’ lawmakers at Capitol

WASHINGTON: US prosecutors now believe supporters of President Donald Trump planned to “capture and assassinate elected officials” in their siege of the Capitol building last week, according to a new court filing.

The filing, submitted by Justice Department lawyers late Thursday, sought the detention of Jacob Chansley of Arizona, the QAnon conspiracy theorist pictured in the riot dressed as a horned shaman at the desk of Vice President Mike Pence.

“Strong evidence, including Chansley’s own words and actions at the Capitol, supports that the intent of the Capitol rioters was to capture and assassinate elected officials in the United States government,” prosecutors said of the January 6 siege. They said Chansley, 33, left a note for Pence at the dais in the Senate Chamber where the second-in-command had been standing just minutes before, which read: “it’s only a matter of time, justice is coming.”

The filing gives further insight into the FBI probe on the day of chaos at the center of American democracy, which left elected officials holed up fearing for their lives and at least five people dead, including one police officer. Prosecutors requested he be detained as he “poses serious risks of flight and danger to the community”. Chansley subscribes to QAnon, the far-right conspiracy theory blamed for fuelling a section of Trump’s supporters at the Capitol building.