BLOOMINGTON – A Bloomington man was arrested Wednesday for offenses related to the Jan. 6 siege at the United States Capitol. He wrote on social media that he and his mother “helped stop the vote count for a bit,” according to federal court documents.
Antony Vo, 28, has been formally charged in federal court on four counts: disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a capitol building, parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a capitol building, and entering or remaining in a restricted building.
Vo used social media accounts on Jan. 6 to document both his attendance at the “Stop the Steal” rally and his storming of the U.S. Capitol, according to a criminal complaint filed this week.
Police say photos included in court documents filed in U.S. District Court show Vo inside the Capitol rotunda after it had been breached. In the photo, Vo poses with a woman later identified as his mother.
A person who knew Vo through their college fraternity shared a post they believed was from Vo’s Facebook page and that circulated among fraternity members and Indiana University alumni.
A second person shared screenshots of Vo’s Instagram account with the FBI. Those images showed a number of Washington locations, including the exterior of the Capitol building, with crowds gathered, the documents said.
The two people who reached out to the FBI said that they knew Vo engaged “in conspiracy theories.” One said Vo was an avid supporter of former President Donald Trump, and the other said Vo subscribed to libertarian ideologies.
Using his various social media accounts, Vo talked about why he entered the Capitol building. In one conversation, Vo said, “My mom and I helped stop the vote count for a bit.” In another conversation on social media, he wrote, “President [Trump] asked me to be here tomorrow so I am with my mom LOL,” the documents said.
When a friend asked Vo via social media how he and other rioters could get into the Capitol building, he claimed police let him and other rioters in, federal documents said.
In another exchange on social media included in the Federal criminal complaint stated Vo stated. “They [the police] pretty much opened up for us. They stood down and retreated after we clearly outnumbered them.”
Federal investigators say Vo admitted in two Instagram exchanges that he “stormed” the Capitol with his mother.
A federal judge has granted Vo’s release without posting a bond.
