Record at a Glance
- Category
- Jan 6th
- Location
- Newark, New Jersey
- 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 not guilty; Acquitted in part or full; Sentenced
- Presidential action
- Pardon
Case Summary
On Jan. 7, 2021, a tipster reached out to the FBI to report that a friend had breached the U.S. Capitol with other people, including Mick Chan. That tipster provided a screenshot to the FBI of a Facebook post from a friend in which Chan was tagged, and which seemed to indicate that Chan and the friend had gotten massages after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, court documents indicate. The post reportedly read: "After all the tear gas and rubber bullets shot at us, this massage today was like heaven on earth!" On Jan. 8, 2021, Chan contacted the FBI and allegedly admitted to entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. According to court documents, Chan told the FBI that he "broke into, well, air quotes, broke into" the Capitol and clarified that he believed others had breached the building before him. Chan reportedly told the FBI that he did not engage in any confrontations, believed the crowd had been infiltrated by antifa and Black Lives Matter and that he had entered the building with "journalistic intent." Chan also allegedly said he had previously met with members of the Proud Boys. In security camera footage from inside the Capitol, he is seen giving the middle finger to the camera, court documents indicate.
Case History
Chan pleaded Not Guilty to all charges. Bench trial verdict on 1/24/2023 found him Guilty on three charges: Entering and Remaining in a Restricted Building or Grounds, Disorderly and Disruptive Conduct in a Restricted Building or Grounds, and Parading, Demonstrating, or Picketing in a Capitol Building. Found Not Guilty on one charge: Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building. Sentenced on 5/5/2023 to 3 Months of Incarceration; 12 Months of Supervised Release; 5 months of home detention; Special Assessment of $60; Restitution of $500; 60 hours of community service. Chan 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.