Global Courant
WASHINGTON — A conspiracy-minded Donald Trump supporter who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was arrested Thursday near the home of former President Barack Obama, a law enforcement official told NBC News.
Taylor Taranto, 37, who was identified by online sleuths in August 2021 and is facing a lawsuit from the widow of a Metropolitan Police Department officer who died by suicide recently appeared at the sentencing of David Walls-Kaufman, his co-defendant in the lawsuit.
While Walls-Kaufman was arrested last year and has already been convicted, Taylor was not charged.
According to his social media account, Taranto has been living in a van near the D.C. jail for the past few weeks and has repeatedly questioned in online posts why he hadn’t been arrested by Jan. 6. Taranto also posted a video of himself on YouTube at the Capitol during the riot.
The Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement that Taranto was arrested under an outstanding warrant, though the department did not specify what the warrant was for, and that he has been charged with a fugitive charge. Officers on the scene had the explosive ordnance disposal team sweep his van near where he was arrested, the department said, adding there is no active threat to the community.
It was not immediately clear when Taranto would appear in court.
NBC News took a look at Taranto’s Telegram account. His last message was a link to a website with conspiracy theories about the Obama house.
This is an evolving story. Check back later for updates.
