Chuck Norris was not present at last week’s deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol, his manager confirms, after a photo on Twitter of a man looking similar to the Walker, Texas Ranger star went viral on social media. The 80-year-old actor’s representative, Erik Kritzer, told PEOPLE that the photo shared by Matthew Bledsoe and captioned, “Chuck Norris” was not actually of the star.
“This is not Chuck Norris and is a wannabe look-alike although Chuck is much more handsome,” said Kritzer. “Chuck remains on his range in Texas where he has been with his family.” Norris did endorse Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election and is a longtime Republican but didn’t publicly share his choice for the 2020 election. Before Kritzer confirmed that Norris did not attend the riot ending in the breach of the U.S. Capitol, people on Twitter debated the true identity of the man who posed for Bledsoe’s photo.
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Wait, so are we just not going to mention the fact that Chuck Norris was at the MAGA insurrection? pic.twitter.com/aIukJpoCmF
— DevinNunesTHEDragQueen (@NunesDrag) January 12, 2021
I have no doubt Chuck Norris is MAGA but this guy isn’t him. Very good lookalike but too young. pic.twitter.com/kD8bXNRzlW
— Danielle Huss (@daniellehuss) January 12, 2021
The pro-Trump riot on Jan. 6 would result in the deaths of five people, including Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died at the age of 42 Thursday from injuries he sustained “while physically engaging with protesters” during the rampage, according to Capitol Police. Authorities shared in a public statement that more than 50 officers of the Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department were injured during the attempted insurrection, and several of them were “hospitalized with serious injuries.”
“The violent attack on the U.S. Capitol was unlike any I have ever experienced in my 30 years in law enforcement here in Washington, D.C.,” said Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, who submitted notice of his resignation the day after the attack, in a statement. “Make no mistake – these mass riots were not First Amendment activities; they were criminal riotous behavior.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is actively working to identify suspects in the Capitol riots and has asked the public to help identify several people wanted for serious federal crimes. As of Tuesday, more than 20 people have been arrested for their alleged role in the riots, and the Department of Justice has indicated that more arrests are imminent.
