‘Bob’s Burgers’ star Jay Johnston was arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of involvement in the January 6 attack on the United States Capitol.
The 54-year-old actor, best known for portraying Jimmy Pesto in the animated comedy series ‘Bob’s Burgers’, is charged with causing civil unrest, unlawfully entering a restricted area and preventing the passage through the grounds of the Capitol.
Johnston also allegedly passed stolen capitol police shields to other rioters and participated in a “group assault” on officers defending the Capitol’s west plaza, according to an affidavit submitted by an FBI agent.
Court documents cite public videos and CCTV footage that authorities say show Johnston joining a crowd of Trump supporters near an entrance to the Capitol known as the “tunnel” and attempting to form a “wall of protection” using stolen Capitol police shields against officers. shows Johnston and other rioters repeatedly pushing “against the police in a concerted move”, according to the affidavit.
Additionally, the FBI says it has obtained United Airlines flight records confirming that Johnston traveled from his hometown of Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., during the run-up to the riot, as well as an alleged text message from Johnston acknowledging that he was at the Capitol on January 6th.
“The news framed it as an attack,” reads the text message included in the affidavit.
“Actually it wasn’t. I thought it had turned into that. It was a mess. I was butchered and tear gassed and found it quite unpleasant.”
The Times could not reach Johnston for comment. A lawyer for Johnston did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press.
Beyond “Bob’s Burgers”, Johnston has appeared in other television series and films such as “Mr. Show With Bob and David”, “Arrested Development” and “Anchorman”. He is among more than 1,000 people charged with federal crimes for their alleged involvement in the Capitol riot and is expected to make his first court appearance on Wednesday in California.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.