Current:Home > reviewsSocial media influencer is charged with joining the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol -Balance Wealth Academy
Social media influencer is charged with joining the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol
Benjamin Ashford View
Date:2025-04-11 08:22:07
A conservative social media influencer has been charged with storming the U.S. Capitol and passing a stolen table out of a broken window, allowing other rioters to use it as a weapon against police, according to court records unsealed on Monday.
Isabella Maria DeLuca was arrested last Friday in Irvine, California, on misdemeanor charges, including theft of government property, disorderly conduct and entering a restricted area.
DeLuca, who has more than 333,000 followers on the platform formerly known as Twitter, is a former congressional intern who works as a media associate for The Gold Institute for International Strategy. DeLuca’s profile on the institute’s website says she served as an ambassador for the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA.
DeLuca also interned for former U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York and Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, both of whom are Republicans who have supported former President Donald Trump.
DeLuca, 24, of Setauket, New York, didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Online court records don’t list an attorney representing her.
During the Jan. 6 riot, DeLuca replied to a Twitter post by writing, “Fight back or let politicians steal and election? Fight back!”
Videos captured her entering a suite of conference rooms inside the Capitol through a broken window on the Lower West Terrace. She passed a table out of the window and then climbed back outside through the same window. A table that another rioter threw at police resembled the one that DeLuca passed out the window, according to an FBI agent’s affidavit.
DeLuca posted about the riot for days after the Jan. 6 attack. When an Instagram user asked her why she supported breaking into the Capitol, she responded, “According to the constitution it’s our house.”
Several days later, she posted on social media that she was at the Capitol on Jan. 6 and had “mixed feelings.”
“People went to the Capitol building because that’s Our House and that’s where we go to take our grievances. People feel, as do I that an election was stolen from them and it was allowed,” she wrote.
When the FBI questioned her roughly two weeks after the Capitol attack, DeLuca denied entering the building on Jan. 6, the agent’s affidavit says.
More than 1,300 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related crimes. Over 800 of them have been sentenced, with roughly two-thirds getting a term of imprisonment ranging from a few days to 22 years.
veryGood! (185)
Related
- John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
- Fewer drops in the bucket: Salvation Army chapters report Red Kettle donation declines
- The 15 most valuable old toys that you might have in your attic (but probably don’t)
- 'You are the father!': Maury Povich announces paternity of Denver Zoo's baby orangutan
- Elon Musk's skyrocketing net worth: He's the first person with over $400 billion
- 1979 Las Vegas cold case identified as 19-year-old Cincinnati woman Gwenn Marie Story
- Nature groups go to court in Greece over a strategic gas terminal backed by the European Union
- The Bachelor Season 28: Meet the Contestants Competing for Joey Graziadei's Heart
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Mother of a child punished by a court for urinating in public refuses to sign probation terms
Ranking
- Trump's 'stop
- Filmmakers call on Iranian authorities to drop charges against 2 movie directors
- Vice President Harris announces nationwide events focused on abortion
- Counselors get probation for role in teen’s death at a now-closed Michigan youth home
- How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
- New protections for very old trees: The rules cover a huge swath of the US
- Artists, books, films that will become free to use in 2024: Disney, Picasso, Tolkien
- The 15 most valuable old toys that you might have in your attic (but probably don’t)
Recommendation
Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
DC is buzzing about a Senate sex scandal. What it says about the way we discuss gay sex.
For only $700K, you can own this home right next to the Green Bay Packers' Lambeau Field
U.S. imposes more Russian oil price cap sanctions and issues new compliance rules for shippers
Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
American consumers are feeling much more confident as holiday shopping season peaks
'Aquaman' star Jason Momoa cracks up Kelly Clarkson with his NSFW hip thrusts: Watch
What to know about Jeter Downs, who Yankees claimed on waivers from Nationals