Washington Post: “The phrase ‘all is fair in love and war’ took on a new meaning Friday, when a Texas man was arrested after boasting to a match in a dating app about participating in the Jan. 6 riot ‘from the very beginning.’ Andrew Taake, from Houston, was charged with assaulting police and storming the Capitol building. His arrest follows a months-long investigation spurred by a tip and a FedEx delivery driver who confirmed his identity to the FBI. Taake made his initial court appearance Friday in the Southern District of Texas, according to a Justice Department news release. His public defender did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Similarly to another arrested rioter, it all started with a conversation on Bumble, a dating app. The unnamed Bumble user asked if he had been ‘near all the action,’ Taake claimed he was pepper-sprayed by police after gathering to protest the presidential election results, according to a July 21 criminal complaint.”
“‘About 30 minutes after being sprayed,’ he said of a selfie showing him wearing a gray beanie and dark gaiter across his face. ‘Safe to say, I was the very first person to be sprayed that day… all while just standing there.’ The two never got to meet face to face. Three days after the events, the match sent the conversation to officials, along with screenshots of Taake’s location on Jan. 6 – shown as Alexandria, Va., just outside Washington D.C. – according to the complaint. After the tip, officials reviewed flight records, security footage and photos and videos posted across social media. What they found was far more than a participant ‘peacefully standing there,’ as Taake claimed on Bumble, according to the complaint. A federal agent said images showed the Texas man ‘using what appears to be a metal whip and pepper spray to attack law enforcement officers.'”