The FBI website seeking information about those involved in the Capitol violence includes more than 900 pictures of roughly 300 people labelled “unidentified.” Part of the problem is that authorities made very few arrests on January 6. They were focused instead on clearing the building of members of the massive mob that attacked police, damaged historic property and combed the halls for lawmakers they threatened to kill. Federal investigators are forced to go back and hunt down participants. The FBI has since received countless tips and pieces of digital media from the public. But a tip is only the first step of a painstaking process, involving things like search warrants and interviews, to confirm people s identities and their presence at the insurrection in order to bring a case in court. And authorities have no record of many of the attackers because this was their first run-in with the law.
The FBI has been helped by sedition hunters,” or armchair detectives who have teamed up to identify some of the most elusive suspects, using crowdsourcing to pore over the vast trove of videos and photos from the assault.
Forrest Rogers, a business consultant who helped form a group of sedition hunters called “Deep State Dogs,” said the group has reported the possible identities of about 100 suspects to the FBI based on evidence it collected.
Sometimes, a distinctive article of clothing helps the group make a match. In one case, a woman carrying a unique iPhone case on Jan. 6 had been photographed with the same case at an earlier protest, Rogers said.
Hunt for Capitol attackers still on 6 months after Jan. 6
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ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN , Associated Press
July 5, 2021
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1of3Rioters loyal to then-President Donald Trump outside of U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Even as the first of the more than 500 federal Capitol riot defendants have begun to plead guilty, scores of suspects remain unidentified, reflecting the massive scale of the Justice Department s investigation and the grueling work authorities still face to track everyone down.Jose Luis Magana/APShow MoreShow Less
2of3Rioters loyal to then-President Donald Trump climb the West Wall of the the U.S. Capitol in Washington. Even as the first of the more than 500 federal Capitol riot defendants have begun to plead guilty, scores of suspects remain unidentified, reflecting the massive scale of the Justice Department s investigation and the grueling work authorities still face to track everyone down.Jose L
Alanna Durkin Richer And Michael Kunzelman July 05, 2021 - 9:05 PM
The first waves of arrests in the deadly siege at the U.S. Capitol focused on the easy targets. Dozens in the pro-Trump mob openly bragged about their actions on Jan. 6 on social media and were captured in shocking footage broadcast live by national news outlets.
But six months after the insurrection, the Justice Department is still hunting for scores of rioters, even as the first of more than 500 people already arrested have pleaded guilty. The struggle reflects the massive scale of the investigation and the grueling work still ahead for authorities in the face of an increasing effort by some Republican lawmakers to rewrite what happened that day.
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Hunt for US Capitol attackers still on 6 months after Jan 6
Rioters loyal to then president Donald Trump outside the United States Capitol in Washington on Jan 6, 2021, in Washington. (File photo: AP/Jose Luis Magana)
06 Jul 2021 01:03PM Share this content
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WASHINGTON: The first waves of arrests in the deadly siege at the United States Capitol focused on the easy targets.
Dozens in the pro-Trump mob openly bragged about their actions on Jan 6 on social media and were captured in shocking footage broadcast live by national news outlets.