The feds are rapidly catching up with the gang of people who recorded themselves storming and occupying the U.S. Capitol Building on January 6th. The latest person arrested out of this Star Wars cantina scene cast of characters is the videographer who calls himself “Baked Alaska,” who began his political awakening at Black Lives Matter protests.
The Justice Department reports that it arrested Anthime “Tim” J. Gionet, who goes by the nom de plume “Baked Alaska” on social media, in Houston, Texas, on Saturday.
He’s been charged with busting into the Capitol Building.
Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
Gionet live-streamed himself inside the Capitol Building, which turned out to be a very bad decision.
He went from a childhood in Anchorage to alt-right fame. Now, the social media personality known as Baked Alaska been arrested for storming the U.S. Capitol. https://t.co/6DGYOYMzec
— Anchorage Daily News (@adndotcom) January 16, 2021
The affidavit filed by the investigating officer cites Gionet’s own video of him inside the Capitol Building and making a phone call to the Senate switchboard. On the phone call, he says he said he’s broken into the office of President Trump.
Within minutes he was identified on social media.
*Anthime Joseph Gionet, right-wing media personality known as “Baked Alaska,” is arrested in Capitol riot.
*He livestreamed the siege, at one point proclaiming: “Patriots are in control. We are in the Capitol building, 1776 will commence again.” https://t.co/aCYxBMT6L1 pic.twitter.com/2StRXloFEV— Jim Roberts (@nycjim) January 17, 2021
The online publication Business Insider reported Gionet’s activism began with Black Lives Matter protests.
[He] firmly opposed the war on drugs, and championed the cause of Black Lives Matter, actively participating in the movement’s street demonstrations.
The one-time rapper-turned-internet troll worked for BuzzFeed News as a videographer, but told the publication Business Insider that it was his work there that “turned me into a monster” – a foe of rampant political correctness.
“I’ll never forget this story,” Gionet said, recalling to Business Insider the “aha moment” that drove him toward Trump. “I was talking about the new Justin Bieber album. And I was like, ‘Dude, that new Justin Bieber album is dope. I have to admit, I love Justin Bieber. He is totally my spirit animal.’ And someone came up to me and was like, ‘Hey bro, you can’t say spirit animal, that’s culturally appropriating Native American culture and that’s not cool.'”
“I was like, ‘What? What the f— are you talking about?’ I had heard … about the dangers of political correctness, but I thought this was just exaggerated,” Gionet said. “I thought there was no way people in real life could be like this.”
[…] “The thing that really attracted me to Trump was his stance against political correctness,” he said.
When he worked for Tom Lyman, producer of the music festival Warp Tour, he got the name “Baked Alaska.”
You have to brand yourself a little more. So I came up with ‘Baked Alaska,’ because at the time I was a stoner. So I was like the baked kid from Alaska. And it’s also a double meaning because it’s a dessert.”
After BuzzFeed, Gionet eventually became the road manager for Milo Yiannopoulos in his 2016 college tour before Milo was cast into the cancel culture heap. The Left refers to him as a white nationalist, a label he told Business Insider is untrue.
The feds used social media posts, including Facebook, Reddit, and Instagram, to catch up with the protesters and rioters who broke into and vandalized the U.S. Capitol, forcing the entire Congress to go on lockdown. Frightened members of Congress were evacuated wearing their gas masks as tear gas was sprayed on the protesters inside and outside.
The FBI said the Leftist turned Libertarian turned far right activist told police he was inside the Capitol Building as a member of the media, according to an AP report.
FBI Special Agent Nicole Miller said in an affidavit filed in the case that Gionet streamed live for about 27 minutes from inside the Capitol and could be heard encouraging other protesters not to leave, cursing and saying “I’m staying,” “1776 baby,” and “I won’t leave guys, don’t worry.”
She wrote that Gionet entered various offices and when told by law enforcement officers to move, identified himself as a member of the media. Miller wrote that Gionet then asked officers where to go before cursing a law officer while alleging the officer shoved him, then leaving the building.
The night before the January 6th siege of the Capitol, Gionet was captured on video tussling with the police – an odd turn after putting out a music video about how he loves the cops and the military.
The FBI report explains that on a YouTube video, Gionet went from office to office and at one point “sits on a couch and places his feet on a table. The defendant encourages others not to break anything.”
Here’s a video of some of “Baked Alaska’s” antics while he was inside the Capitol Building.
Victoria Taft is the host of “The Adult in the Room Podcast With Victoria Taft” where you can hear her series on “Antifa Versus Mike Strickland.” Find it here.Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Parler, MeWe, Minds @VictoriaTaft
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