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Actor and comedian Jay Johnston was arrested on Wednesday, June 7, for his participation in the U.S. Capitol Riots that took place on January 6, 2021. The official complaint against Johnston states that several charges were imposed on him by the Department of Justice.
The charges against Jay include civil disorder, entering and remaining in a restricted property, being involved in disorderly activities at the restricted place, and impeding passage via Capitol grounds or buildings. Jay shall be freed on bail at $25,000 as stated by a federal magistrate judge.
Jay Johnston was identified by a few of his associates
According to the surveillance footage of the riots, Jay Johnston pushed the cops who were trying to control the crowd and assisted some of the people in attacking officers who were covering the entrance to the Capitol. Jay then put a police shield on top of him for cover and passed it to others who accompanied him.
Flight records revealed that Jay traveled to Washington a day before the riots and returned to Los Angeles the day after the riots. The complaint issued against Johnston states that the actor was identified by some of his associates. One of them provided the FBI with a text message wherein Johnston confirmed being at the Capitol on January 6:
'The news has presented it as an attack. It actually wasn't. Thought it kind of turned into that. It was a mess. Got maced and tear gassed and I found it quite unstatic."
After the riots, the FBI released a few pictures on their official Twitter page, and Jay was also spotted in some of them. The post mentioned that the FBI was looking for all those who participated in the riots, and they asked anyone with information about the accused to call the authorities.
The U.S. Capitol was attacked on January 6, 2021, after Donald Trump did not emerge victorious during the presidential election the previous year. The incident left many people injured, including police officers, and there were damages of more than $2.7 million. More than thousands have been charged for their participation in the riots, and 500 of them have been already sentenced.
Jay Johnston has appeared in many films and TV shows
Jay Johnston made his television debut in 1995 with the ABC sitcom, Ellen. He was also the writer for 28 episodes of the sketch comedy series, Mr. Show with Bob and David.
Johnston's first film as an actor was the fantasy comedy film, Jack Frost, which was released in 1998. He then appeared in various other films like The Independent, Men in Black II, Dirty Love, Demoted, Hell and Back, and more.
Jay portrayed Officer Taylor in the Fox sitcom, Arrested Development, and officer Jay McPherson in the sitcom, The Sarah Silverman Program. He has appeared as Jimmy Pesto in a few episodes of Bob's Burgers.
