WASHINGTON — A Hollywood actor who appeared on “Mr. Show,” “Arrested Development” and “Bob’s Burgers” and in “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy” has been arrested in California and charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Jay Johnston faces charges of felony obstruction of officers during civil disorder, as well as several misdemeanor offenses, according to court documents.
The Daily Beast reported in December 2021 that Johnston had been “banned” from “Bob’s Burgers,” on which he voiced the character of Jimmy Pesto Sr.
Johnston was one of hundreds of Jan. 6 participants identified by online sleuths who have not been arrested. A Long Island, New York, funeral home owner was also arrested Wednesday.
Court documents say Johnston entered the upper west tunnel of the Capitol, where some of the most violent attacks of the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, took place, and “assisted at least three other rioters by pouring water on the rioters’ faces.” He then used a stolen Capitol Police shield as rioters battled with police, the documents say.
An attorney representing Johnston contacted the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center on March 8, 2021, according to the FBI. Three of Johnston’s current or former associates told the FBI that Jan. 6 photos depicted Johnston, and one of the associates provided a message in which Johnston acknowledged being at the Capitol on Jan. 6, it said.
More than 1,000 people have been arrested in connection with the Capitol attack, and hundreds more arrests are in the works.
