Far-right influencer known as ‘Baked Alaska’ sentenced over Capitol attack

Anthime Gionet, a far-right social media personality known to followers as Baked Alaska, was sentenced on Tuesday to two months in prison for his participation in the US Capitol attack - participation he live-streamed.

In court in Washington DC, the US district judge Trevor McFadden told Gionet, 35: "You did everything you could to publicise your misconduct. You were there encouraging and participating fully in what was going on."

Gionet did not address the court.

On 6 January 2021, rioters breached the Capitol in service of Donald Trump's attempt to overturn the 2020 election via the lie that Joe Biden's win was the result of electoral fraud.

Gionet broadcast to around 16,000 followers from locations including the office of Jeff Merkley, a Democratic senator from Oregon. Pretending to report a "fraudulent election", Gionet said: "We need to get our boy, Donald J Trump, into office."

According to court documents, Gionet also told rioters: "Come in, let's go, come on in, make yourself at home" and chanted: "Patriots are in control!" and "Whose house? Our house!"

His attorney, Zachary Thornley, argued that Gionet "never crossed the line from being a protestor to a rioter" and was instead "sort of a guerrilla journalist" who was "there to document. That's what he does."