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Trump supporters during the storm on the Capitol in January 2021
Photo:
Leah Millis / REUTERS
The US Department of Justice has arrested a man believed to have been involved in the January 6 assault on the Washington Capitol.
The Texan Andrew Taake could be convicted using a dating app, as the prosecutor announced.
In one thread, he bragged several selfies and claimed to have spent 30 minutes in the government building.
He wrote to his match in the dating app Bumble that he had been there "from the beginning".
Besides, he would have been the first to be sprayed with pepper spray, "even though I was just standing there."
His match then shared the information with the FBI.
Supporters of the then US President Donald Trump stormed the seat of the US Congress in Washington on January 6th.
Five people were killed, including a police officer.
According to the criminal complaint, Taake is not only supposed to have run along, but also to have attacked police officers.
Screenshots in which the defendant reported his bumble match on the day are available to the FBI as evidence.
There is also footage showing the man attacking police officers.
He used pepper spray and had what was reportedly a weapon that looked like a metal whip.
Photos in social networks are also conclusive, it said in the indictment.
In addition, Taake was logged into radio cells with his mobile phone that are used in the Capitol.
The man himself is said to have not yet commented on the allegations.
Just a few days ago, one of the participants in the violent storm on what are probably the most important US institutions was sentenced to prison for the first time.
A federal court sentenced 38-year-old Paul Hodgkins to eight months in prison.
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