A man suspected of taking part in the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021 while donning an unusual mask—a huge panda head—has been detained by the FBI.
Jesse James Rumson, also known as the "sedition panda," was apprehended in Florida.
He is currently being prosecuted on a number of counts, including assaulting or resisting a police officer and using physical force on private property.
Since the riot, almost 1,000 people have been detained.
In accordance with court documents, the FBI was able to identify Mr. Rumson after receiving a tip and viewing video that showed him donning and removing the panda mask while traveling to the Capitol with his face clearly visible. .
He is thought to have been one of the first rioters to enter the structure through a big door that had been broken into there.
Images captured inside the structure seem to show Mr. Rumson wandering the hallways while wearing a panda mask before he eventually takes off the disguise and leaves the structure.
Prosecutors estimate that Mr. Rumson was in the Capitol for only about 15 minutes in total before leaving. However, video from the outside reveals that he urged other rioters to "get a ram" to break through a different entrance.
He allegedly assaulted a police officer later by "running through the crowd towards the officer, reaching out and grabbing the officer's face shield, which forced the officer's head and neck backwards and upwards," according to the affidavit.
Web sleuths looking for rioters shared numerous other pictures of Mr. Rumson, many of which appeared to show him wearing the panda mask.
Mr. Rumson has also been charged with disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, obstructing law enforcement during a civil disturbance, and disorderly and disruptive conduct, among other offenses, in addition to the assault charges.
When he will show up in court is unknown. The FBI and justice department have been contacted by BBC News for comment.
In nearly every state in the US as well as Washington, DC, over 985 people had been detained as of 7 February, according to the Department of Justice's most recent report on the investigation into the riot of 6 January.
A total of 319 people, including 105 accused of using a deadly weapon or inflicting "serious bodily harm," were charged with assaulting, restraining, or obstructing officers or employees.
The FBI is still asking for assistance from the general public in locating and identifying the 260 participants in the riot, some of whom were captured on camera assaulting Capitol police and journalists.
