DOJ Says Social Media Offer of Pardons for Capitol Breach Is Fake

Protesters gather outside the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

A social media post purportedly from a top Justice Department (DOJ) official floating presidential pardons to those involved in the Jan. 6 breach of the U.S. Capitol is fake, the department said on Jan. 9.

The post appears to have originated from a Parler account claiming to be the official social media page of Acting Pardon Attorney Rosalind Sargent-Burns. It states that President Donald Trump “is strongly considering” pardoning “all patriots” who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6.