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Was 'Elizabeth from Knoxville' maced or did she dab eyes with onion? Internet asks if Capitol riot was 'planned'

In the video, the 31-year-old woman, who identified herself as 'Elizabeth from Knoxville', is seen holding a pale circular object wrapped in a towel and rubbing her eyes with it

Did the pro-Donald Trump protester, Elizabeth Koch, whose interview after allegedly getting "maced" by the police at the Capitol went viral, dab onion on her eyes to fake tears? What's the object that she's holding in her hand that's giving rise to speculations that the "riots were planned"?

A new discovery from the pro-Trump protester's interview with White House correspondent Hunter Walker has many saying on social media that her "crying" on camera was staged. In the video, the 31-year-old woman, who identified herself as 'Elizabeth from Knoxville', is seen holding a pale circular object wrapped in a towel. 

On noticing an inconsolable Koch dab the towel on her red eyes, a significant number of social media users are asking if the cops really maced her or if it was a planned act before the camera. 

One user wrote, "She’s got an onion in a towel and she’s rubbing it in her eye. Are you sure she was sprayed? Might want to confirm that before you air this. Pepper spray makes your eyes really red. Just look at video of people who got sprayed at the George Floyd protests." While another added, "We know it’s all a show. People wonder why 'Elizabeth from Knoxville' was holding an ONION." Adding to the above tweets, another social media user opined, "Umm if you slow the video of Elizabeth from Knoxville down to 0.25x speed, you can see an onion in her towel that she rubs her eyes with "after she got maced." Another tweeted, "It's amazing that she planned this and brought half an onion to the riot. Oh, Elizabeth from Knoxville."

Meanwhile, some of the Twitter users seem to believe onions help in relieving the burning sensation in the eyes after getting sprayed with tear gas. Therefore, the speculations surrounding the object in Koch's hand has many wondering if the Pro-Trump protesters had "planned" the riots, and hence they came prepared.

One tweeted, "The idea is that the onion protects against the pepper spray. They honestly tell each other that." Another added, "Well a girl rubbing her eyes with an onion claimed she was pepper sprayed. Refusing extra police protect is just plain stupid. Everyone knew this would happen."

Even though more and more social media users are coming forward to express their opinion about protesters using onions to "protect" themselves from tear gas, it is uncertain if the theory is true. According to the Sun, Palestinian protesters have reportedly used "onions among a multitude of other defenses in the past to try and protect themselves from tear gas".

Koch made headlines amid Capitol riots when she claimed on camera that she was "maced" by a police officer. The video shows her saying, "I made it like a foot inside and they pushed me out and they maced me." When asked why she forced herself into the building, she said, "Because we’re storming the Capitol. It’s a revolution."

The interview sparked outrage among the public and it was reported that Elizabeth could be charged with a felony that can carry a 20-year prison sentence. Commenting on the same, Los Angeles County prosecutor David Fleck told MEAWW, "With Elizabeth from Knoxville, they’re got all the evidence they need on tape. Prosecuting her will be simple if they want to do it. However, this isn’t a simple law enforcement decision, it’s also a political one."

He further added, "These charging decisions will be made at the highest political level, because there are politics involved in the decision whether to prosecute everybody or, simply make an example of a few. They will also consider the likelihood that prosecutions may further inflame the situation. But they will certainly comb through the video and find the worst actors."