NYT Documents Crimes Committed by J6ers After Trump Pardons: ‘More Than 110,000 Child Pornography Images’

Photo by Michael Brochstein/Sipa USA(Sipa via AP Images

The New York Times Editorial Board released a lengthy piece on Tuesday documenting all of the crimes committed by Jan. 6 rioters after they were pardoned by President Donald Trump. 

When Trump pardoned approximately 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants and prisoners in the first month of his second term, at least four of those who have gone on to commit crimes were already in jail.

Andrew Paul Johnson pleaded guilty to multiple nonviolent counts related to his conduct on Jan. 6 and was sentenced to a year in prison before being released due to Trump’s pardon. The story of the horrific crimes he went on to commit has already been widely reported, with critics fuming that the man who repeatedly abused young children had been allowed to leave a jail cell. Johnson reportedly promised the children a share of his possible retribution payments in exchange for their silence.

Two other rioters who were incarcerated when they were pardoned have been charged with further crimes, including Zachary Alam, who was arrested for stealing a computer and a diamond necklace after breaking into a house in Virginia.

“On Jan. 6, he was among the first to enter the Capitol building from its west lawn and hurled items at police officers from a balcony,” wrote The Times. “At his sentencing hearing, he was unrepentant: ‘Sometimes you have to break the rules to do what’s right.’ He had previous convictions for auto theft and driving under the influence.”

A large group of others pardoned by Trump has also gone on to commit additional crimes. Daniel Tocci, who broke into the Capitol along with the mob and destroyed government property, was sentenced to four years in prison this month for “possession of more than 110,000 child pornography images.”

Bryan Betancur was charged with assault and battery after grabbing a woman’s hair on the Washington Metro. The Times noted that two women have accused Betancur of stalking, and that he was actively on probation for burglary when he attended the Capitol riot in 2021.

“Jonathan Munafo was rearrested last year after he allegedly fled federal supervision imposed for dozens of menacing phone calls, including one in which he threatened to ‘cut the throat’ of a 911 dispatcher,” The Times noted in another case. “During the riots, he punched a police officer twice, stole his riot shield and used a wooden flagpole to try to break a window.”

Other rioters’ crimes include a harassment charge for threatening to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), the violation of a legal order for repeatedly following the mother of a rioter’s child, and the theft of thousands of dollars’ worth of copper wiring.

“One does not have to be a criminologist to predict that people who commit a violent act and are absolved of any punishment might become repeat offenders,” wrote The Times. 

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