George Pierre Tanios

Case Summary

George Pierre Tanios is the manager of Sandwich University, a sandwich shop in Morgantown, W.Va., according to documents he filed when applying for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in May 2020. A criminal complaint reveals Tanios maintains social media accounts under the names “King of the fat sandwich” and “the sandwich nazi.” Tanios wore a sweatshirt bearing the Sandwich University logo to the U.S. Capitol riot, which helped tipsters identify him to the FBI after he “had bragged about going to the insurrection” on Facebook, according to the criminal complaint. The complaint alleges surveillance footage shows another man charged in the riots, Julian Khater, reaching into Tanios’ backpack during the Jan. 6 siege, saying, “Give me that bear s***.” Tanios allegedly replies, “Hold on, hold on, not yet, not yet … it’s still early.” About nine minutes later, bodycam footage apparently shows Khater holding a can aloft, spraying chemical irritant toward police officers. The criminal complaint says three officers were temporarily blinded. One of the officers died at about 9:30 p.m. Jan. 7, but it is not clear whether the chemical spray was the cause of death. Another officer suffered scabbing underneath her eyes for weeks. One of Tanios’ former business partners was among the FBI’s informants. This person accused Tanios of embezzling $435,000 from their company. Documents from Tanios’ 2020 bankruptcy filing show he owed more than $400,000 in taxes and debts to the IRS and the state of West Virginia, plus over $110,000 in debts to banks, utility companies and a law firm.

Case History

Tanios pleaded Guilty to two charges: Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; and Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds. Sentenced on 1/27/2023 to time served; restitution of $500; a fine of $1,248; $50 special assessment; 12 months of supervised release; 100 hours of community service. Tanios received a full pardon on January 20, 2025

Sources

• Primary Documentation
  NPR Jan. 6 Defendant DatabaseNPR
• Primary Documentation
  Underlying court recordCourt record linked by NPR
• Supporting Reporting
  NPR video evidence pageNPR

Case summary, charges, procedural updates and image are drawn from the NPR Jan. 6 archive snapshot dated 2026-09-25 unless otherwise indicated.