Jon Schaffer of heavy metal band Iced Earth has been identified as one of the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol during Wednesday’s count of Electoral College votes to certify Joe Biden's win.
The 52-year-old musician was among the pro-Trump goons captured in a photo as they made their way through the building. He is seen wearing a cap from Oath Keepers, an anti-government militia group.
“I'm about as close to an anarchist as you can be,” he said in a 2018 interview. “I'm not a fan of government, I'm not a fan of the left — they're just as ridiculous as the extreme right.”
One person was killed and several others were injured during the rampage, which resulted in significant damage to the historic building.
The FBI appealed to members of the public for “information that will assist in identifying individuals who are actively instigating violence in Washington, D.C.” and said it is accepting tips and digital media “depicting rioting and violence in the U.S. Capitol Building.”
MORE: Music Stars React To Attack On U.S. Capitol
Paul Stanley of KISS is among those who condemned the violence.
“These are TERRORISTS. This is armed insurrection,” he tweeted. “The flames were fanned today & over time by the president & specific senators who CANNOT be allowed now to distance from or denounce what they have directly caused. Know their names. THIS is the result of their deception. Shame.”
Schaffer is known to have attended a rally in November to protest the results of the election Trump lost. “They will go down,” he told Germany’s Die Welt at the time. “They’re messing with the wrong people, believe me.”
Last summer, Schaffer publicly downplayed the COVID-19 pandemic as “a psychological warfare campaign on the people.”