A viral video making the rounds on social media seems to show a participant in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot on his way to turn himself in to the police. The young man spoke directly into the camera as he drives, affecting a blasé attitude about going to prison, and even joking about getting “free meals.” He also compared the rioters to the soldiers in the American Revolution.
“Well, on my way to turn myself in,” said the cameraman. “Decent, couple-hour drive in, but uh, yeah man, here we go! Here we go, baby. So, did the rebels turn themselves in to the British when they did what they did? No. But am I gonna? Yeah. And why’s that? ‘Cause I want to, I guess?”
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Right-wing terrorist on his way to turn himself in for storming the Capitol pic.twitter.com/c8ddhluhRo
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) January 18, 2021
The monologue continued with the same resignation: “Whatever, man, do to me what you want to do. You want to give me free meals in jail, in prison? Sure, man. You guys want to pay for my meals? That’s cool, man. I’m happy with that. I don’t need any organic stuff… We’ll see how it goes.”
Commenters on Twitter were shocked by the speaker’s bluster, and mocked him for it as well. Many pointed to a report by Brandon Fellows by Bloomberg, believing it to be the same young man. According to the profile, Fellows posted videos of the Capitol riot on Snapchat throughout the afternoon of Jan. 6, including one now-infamous image of his own feet up on Sen. Jeff Merkley’s desk while he smoked a joint.
Fellows’ posts showed him mocking Capitol Police as some tried to contain the insurrection. He spent about half an hour in the Capitol building, aimlessly strolling through wrecked offices and national monuments. A Capitol Police officer directed him at one point, and did not try to detain him. He said that the relaxed attitude of the officers led him to believe there would be no consequences for the security breach.
“Did I think I was going to get in trouble? Uh, no,” he told reporters. He acknowledged that he “did trespass, I guess,” and called the video where he smoked a joint “incriminating.” He also posted a photo of himself sitting on a stolen police motorcycle.
Still, Fellows told reporters that he intended to return to Washington, D.C. for more pro-Trump demonstrations, including on Inauguration Day. However, The Times Union reported that Fellows was arrested by the FBI on Saturday night — perhaps after posting that now-viral video. Authorities are on the lookout for more potentially violent protests as Inauguration Day draws closer.
