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Multiple Capitol riot defendants took to the internet with incendiary messages in the aftermath of the Monday FBI raid at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound — even as some of those offenders await sentencing for their role in the January 6 attack.
The FBI earlier this week conducted a search at the former president’s South Florida resort as part of its investigation into his handling of classified and sensitive documents, according to several reports. A lawyer for Trump told media outlets on Tuesday that agents took about 12 boxes of records during the search.
The unprecedented move by the Justice Department set off a firestorm of Republican fury as the former president and several GOP lawmakers flung accusations of misconduct and partisan politicking at the agency.
“For a large section of Trump’s base, this probably energized them to some extent,” Chris Haynes, a politics professor at the University of New Haven told Insider.
Among those seemingly invigorated by Monday’s raid are some of Trump’s most fervent supporters — those devotees who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021 in an effort to stop the certification of President Joe Biden’s win.
But even though federal prosecutors have frequently cited rioters’ own pre-siege social media posts in charging documents against them, some Jan. 6 defendants couldn’t resist weighing in on the most recent Trumpian drama.
The YouTuber known as Baked Alaska waded into the controversy this week during a livestream. Baked Alaska, whose real name is Anthime Gionet, pleaded guilty last month to a misdemeanor charge related to his role in the insurrection, during which he livestreamed himself for nearly 30 minutes as he urged other rioters to enter the Capitol, prosecutors have said.
