A man who fled the country after storming the U.S Capitol on Jan. 6 was granted asylum in Belarus, according to Newsweek.
Evan Neumann,49, fled the country in February 2021, and a federal arrest warrant was issued for him in December. He was charged with six crimes related to the insurrection, including two felonies for assaulting an officer and participating in a civil disorder.
Video released from Jan. 6 shows Neumann “verbally abusing” law enforcement officers at the Capitol. He said they will be “overrun,” adding, “I’m willing to die, are you?”
Neumann allegedly took a metal barricade and “shoved it into the line of officers,” striking them with the barricade and his fist. He also used the barricade as a “battering ram,” eventually entering the building and refusing orders from police to leave the Capitol grounds, according to Newsweek.
He told a Russian media outlet that he feels safe in Belarus. In an interview with Belarusian state TV last year Neumann claims the charges against him are “unfounded” and amounts to “political persecution.”
