Record at a Glance
- Category
- Jan 6th
- Age in NPR record
- 25
- Location
- Lake St. Louis, Missouri
- Charges
- Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds; Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building; Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building
- Case status
- Pleaded guilty; Dismissed in part or full; Sentenced
- Presidential action
- Pardon
Case Summary
The FBI received two tips that Jonas Buxton was at the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot. The first, according to charging documents, came from a person married to one of Buxton's family members, who said that they had been told Buxton participated in the riot and may have been carrying an AR-15 rifle. A second tipster reportedly said that Buxton quit his store job after arrests related to Jan. 6, 2021, were announced and "went into hiding." The FBI continued to investigate Buxton's involvement, identifying a cellphone number associated with Buxton, according to court records. Google data obtained by the FBI showed that that cell number was inside the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, and court documents show a map of the phone's movements on that day. In April of 2021, Buxton flew into Miami from Panama City and was flagged by a Customs and Border Protection officer for secondary search, during which the officer was able to look at Buxton's phone. The customs officer allegedly found several photos of Buxton wearing a tactical vest with a "Trump" patch in the center, including one showing him holding a large gun in front of a Christmas tree and another in a red gaiter and red hat worn backwards. The officer also allegedly discovered a letter from the "Three Percenters," a far-right extremist group, with a "call to action" to go to Washington, D.C., on the day of the riot, saying that the president had called them there that day. Federal prosecutors say that surveillance footage from inside the Capitol that day show someone who appears to be Buxton -- wearing the vest with the "Trump" patch and a red gaiter around his neck.
Case History
Buxton pleaded Guilty to one charge: Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building. The other charges are dismissed. Sentenced 12/2/2022 to 18 months of probation, including 40 hours of community service, $500 fine, $500 restitution; special assessment of $10. Buxton 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
Case summary, charges, procedural updates and image are drawn from the NPR Jan. 6 archive snapshot dated 2026-09-25 unless otherwise indicated.