Capitol Rioter Reportedly Seeking Asylum in Belarus After Fleeing Criminal Charges From the FBI
State media in Belarus is reporting that an American citizen on the FBI’s Most Wanted List is seeking political asylum in the country after his involvement in the storming of the U.S. Capitol.
Evan Neumann, a 48 year old California man, appeared on a state-run TV network in Belarus over the weekend that, according to translations from multiple outlets, was shown under the title of “Goodbye, America.” In the segment, Neumann is portrayed as a victim of political persecution and a “simple American whose shops were burned by Black Lives Matter activists.”
As it so happens, Neumann has been a person of interest to federal investigators for some time, ever since he was caught on video assaulting a police officer and taking part in the violent pro-Donald Trump mob that attacked the Capitol on January 6th. He was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted List months ago, and he faces charges for assault, violent entry, disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, and resisting and obstructing law enforcement during civil disorder.
Reports about Neumann indicate that he sold his house, travelled to Europe and went into hiding after his lawyer notified him that the FBI was adding him to the Most Wanted List. In the previewed portion of his segment, Neumann is shown telling an interviewer that he travelled through Europe for months before renting an apartment in Ukraine for 4 months. He goes on to claim that Ukrainian security services were following him, which prompted him to flee into the wilderness before illegally crossing into Belarus, where he was detained by border guards in August.
Neumann’s sympathetic portrayal in the segment exemplifies how state media in Belarus follows the talking points of President Alexander Lukashenko, an authoritarian who mocked the U.S. after the Capitol riot. On a separate but related note, Russian President Vladimir Putin has invoked the Capitol riot in order to engage in whataboutism and distract from his mistreatment of political dissidents.
