Capitol rioter willing to testify in Trump impeachment trial: Report

Washington, Jan 29 A man who had his face painted blue and red and donned a fur hat with horns while storming the US Capitol building in Washington D.C. on January 6, has said that he was willing to testify in former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial next month, the media reported citing his lawyer.

In a statement to The Hill news website on Thursday, laywer Albert Watkins confirmed that his client Jacob Chansley would be willing to testify during the Senate impeachment trial set to begin February 8.

Images of Chansley went viral on the internet as the violent riots took place which were staged by supporters of Trump following a speech he made earlier that day outside the Capitol calling for "patriots" to take a stand against the 2020 election results.

Chansley surrendered to authorities on January 9.

He faces numerous charges, including knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, The Hill news website reported.

Speaking a local media outlet last week, Watkins said that Chansley felt that he had been "duped by the President", which further "put him in a position to make decisions he should not have made".

The Democrats-controlled House of Representatives on January 13 voted to impeach Trump for a second time in over a year for "incitement of insurrection", making him the first American President to be impeached twice.

At least 17 Republicans would need to join all 50 Democrats to convict Trump by a two-thirds majority.

In Trump's first impeachment trial held last year, which lasted three weeks, only one Republican senator, Mitt Romney, voted to convict Trump on abuse of power charge.

( With inputs from IANS )