What’s New
A January 6 rioter has reportedly applied for political asylum in Canada.
Antony Vo, formerly of Bloomington, Indiana, failed to turn up to prison to serve a nine-month sentence.
WISH-TV television station in Vo’s home state of Indiana reported he was living across the border with his mother Annie Vo, who went to the Capitol with him on January 6, 2021.
Newsweek sought comment from Vo through social media on Monday. Newsweek also sought comment from the U.S. Marshals Service, which is responsible for apprehending fugitive federal prisoners.
Why It Matters
The Justice Department has made massive efforts to arrest and charge Trump supporters who forced their way into the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The rioters were attempting to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden‘s win in the 2020 presidential election.
In a press release in January 2024, the Justice Department said it and the FBI had launched an “unprecedented” investigation and would not rest until they had found those who had “disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the process of affirming the presidential election results.”
“The investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the attack continues to move forward at an unprecedented speed and scale,” it stated, noting that “more than 1,265 defendants have been charged in nearly all 50 states and the District of Columbia.”
Many more have been arrested through 2024 as the investigation continues.
Vo’s refusal to go to prison and attempts to claim asylum in Canada may encourage others to flee until Donald Trump is inaugurated.
What To Know
Vo was due to surrender to a federal prison in the summer of 2024 to serve a nine-month sentence.
He was found guilty in 2023 of entering or remaining in a restricted building; disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, violent entry or disorderly conduct in the Capitol building or grounds and parading, and demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
In August, 2024, his mother, Annie Vo, was charged with similar offenses and has pled not guilty. She had traveled to the Capitol building with her son.
WISH-TV, channel 8, a television station in Indianapolis, Indiana, reported on Saturday that Antony Vo had canceled an asylum meeting with Canadian authorities until they could give him assurances that he would not be arrested and sent back to the U.S.
His asylum application states that he is the victim of a “purely political persecution,” WISH also reported.
What People Are Saying
Vo told WISH in November that he believes that Trump will pardon him after the president-elect is inaugurated in January.
Trump repeatedly pledged during the 2024 presidential election campaign that he would pardon January 6 defendants.
It’s likely that Vo will abandon his asylum application if Trump pardons him.
He told WISH in November that he had applied for a job with the Trump transition team and Trump’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency.
What Happens Next
Vo will continue with his Canadian asylum application, according to WISH. If Trump pardoned him after Trump’s inauguration on January 20, it is believed Vo would likely return to the U.S., given his job application.
The post Jan 6 Rioter Asks for Political Asylum in Canada after Skipping Jail appeared first on Newsweek.
