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Did Jay Johnston storm Capitol? Tim Heidecker to Spencer Crittenden, all the claims about ‘Bob's Burgers’ actor

No sooner did the pictures from the FBI start circulating, many social media users pointed out that the man in the pictures bore a striking resemblance to actor Jay Johnston

On Thursday, March 4, 2021, the FBI released images of a person of interest on Twitter who allegedly participated in the violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Two photos of the man were released in order to seek help from the public - one with a mask and the other without a mask.

Shortly after the picture was uploaded, it began to circulate. No sooner did that happen than many social media users pointed out that the man in the pictures bore a striking resemblance with actor Jay Johnston, an alum of 'Bob’s Burgers', 'Mr. Show', and the 'Sarah Silverman Program'. Among these were also famous celebrities. 

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While it is not known whether it was indeed Johnston in the images, many of his peers have taken to social media to claim that the actor was actually present at the riot. This list of names includes Tim Heidecker, Spencer Crittenden, Cassandra Church, and Matt Novak. 

Tim Heidecker

Comedian Tim Heidecker, who worked with Johnston on the HBO show 'With Bob and David', took to Twitter to say that it had been "confirmed" through "reliable sources" that it was actually Johnston. The tweet, however, was later deleted and Heidecker explained that his tweet "shouldn't be used as some kind of official source of information or verification" as it was a "reply to someone who asked". 

Spencer Crittenden

In the latest articles, Crittenden from 'Harmontown' posted messages saying that Johnston had attended the rally. But these tweets are not available at the moment. 

Matt Novak

Novak took to Twitter to write, "Just emailed Jay Johnston's agent to see where he was on January 6 because my job is very funny sometimes," adding that he hadn't written word from the agent after writing the tweet. 

In the same thread, he added, "If it really does turn out to be Jay Johnston we need to have a serious talk about the capabilities and competence of the FBI." At the same time, he indicated that it might be Johnston: "Has the FBI ever used the internet before? Because these are the results using a free image search on that photo they posted."

Cassandra Church

Church, who along with Crittenden also worked on 'Harmontown', reportedly posted a similar message. 

Another message claiming that he was a supporter of former president Donald Trump is now not available on Twitter. Reports also reveal that Johnston once also appeared on Proud Boy founder Gavin McInnes’ show, 'The Gavin McInnes Show'.

Did Johnston really attend the riots?

At the time of writing this article, the identity of the person in the pictures uploaded by the FBI has not been officially confirmed. Following the U.S. Capitol attacks, the FBI has been keeping a list of all the people arrested for participating in the attack. While this was updated on March 1, 2021, Johnston's name was not on it. 

There is no official, confirmed proof at the moment that Johnston was present at the riots and/ or is the focus of an FBI investigation. 

Johnston is also known for his guest appearances on 'Arrested Development', 'Community', 'Curb Your Enthusiasm', and 'Parks and Recreation', as well as in films such as 'Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy' and 'Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny'.