Jan. 6 Suspect Arrested Near Obama Home After Trump Shares Address

Sources say Taylor Taranto had weapons, ammunition in van
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 30, 2023 11:13 AM CDT
Fugitive Jan. 6 Suspect Arrested Near Obama Home
Trump supporters rally at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.   (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

A suspect wanted in connection with the Capitol attack was arrested near former President Obama's home in Washington, DC, on Thursday—and while the address is not a secret, it might not be a coincidence that former President Trump shared it on Truth Social hours earlier. A Truth Social account linked to suspect Taylor Taranto reposted the article Trump shared and added, "Got them surrounded!" A law enforcement source tells the New York Times that firearms, ammunition, and materials that could make explosives were found in Taranto's van.

NBC reports that according to Taranto's social media accounts, he has spent the last few weeks living in his van near the Washington jailhouse where numerous Jan. 6 suspects are being held. He shared conspiracy theories about Obama's home online and livestreamed his activities on the day of his arrest, speaking of underground tunnels he believed were in the neighborhood. He also said he had a detonator, CNN reports. It's not clear whether Obama and his family were at home when Taranto was detained by Secret Service officers.

Taranto, who had an open warrant for his arrest on charges related to the Capitol attack, was charged with being a fugitive from justice, report CNN. Taranto is also a defendant in a lawsuit filed in 2021 by the widow of a police officer who took his own life after the attack, the Washington Post reports. Lawyers for Erin Smith said Taranto handed a cane or crowbar to David Walls-Kaufman, who hit Jeffrey Smith in the face with it. Smith's death nine days later was ruled a line-of-duty death. Walls-Kaufman was arrested last year and sentenced to two months in prison. (More Capitol riot stories.)

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