US Capitol rioter pardoned by Trump found guilty of child sex abuse
A Florida handyman who received a presidential pardon from President Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot was found guilty Tuesday of multiple child sex abuse charges, prosecutors said.
Andrew Paul Johnson was convicted by a Hernando County jury on five counts, including molestation of a child under 12, molestation of a child under 16, and lewd and lascivious exhibition, according to reporting by NPR. He was acquitted of one charge of sending sexual material to a child. Johnson was arrested in August in connection with the case.
A police report obtained by NPR described allegations that Johnson sexually abused children over a period of several months.
According to the report, the mother of one child said Johnson, described as her former boyfriend, sent inappropriate messages to her son through the gaming platform Discord. After she questioned her son, he told her Johnson had molested him three times between April and October 2024, beginning when he was 11 years old.
Investigators said Johnson also attempted to persuade a victim not to report the abuse by claiming the Trump administration was paying him $10 million in restitution related to his Jan. 6 case and that the child would be included in his will. The police report said authorities believed this was an attempt to prevent the victim from disclosing what had happened. While some Jan. 6 defendants have publicly advocated for reparations, no such payments have been made.
Johnson previously pleaded guilty to nonviolent charges related to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and was sentenced to one year in prison in 2024, according to court documents. Prosecutors said he entered the Capitol through a broken office window, encouraged others to follow, and remained on Capitol grounds for several hours before being arrested. They also alleged he violated release conditions multiple times and spread false information about the riot on social media after his arrest.
Johnson was among approximately 1,500 Jan. 6 defendants who received pardons from President Trump early in his second term.
He is scheduled to be sentenced in March and could face up to life in prison, William Forgie, chief assistant state attorney for Florida’s Fifth Judicial Circuit, told NPR. Johnson’s attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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