Iced Earth bandleader Jon Schaffer is reportedly facing extradition for his participation in the Capitol riots earlier this month.
Schaffer, who is currently being detained in Marion County Jail in Edinburgh, Indiana, will soon be transferred to Washington D.C. where he will meet six criminal charges, following his surrender to authorities.
The US Attorney and Schaffer's legal team have both agreed to move the proceedings from Schaffer’s home state of Indiana to Washington, D.C., where he will be charged with a series of crimes — including engaging in an act of physical violence — relating to the breach of the capitol building on January 6.
Schaffer must also prove that he is not a threat to himself or the public before being released on bail. Other rioters already granted bail must follow a strict code of conduct, including giving up firearms, avoiding communication with other alleged rioters and to stay away from all capitol buildings.
The metaller was identified among the mob of pro-Trump protestors wearing a baseball cap with the slogan “Oath Keepers Lifetime Member”. According to the Anti-Defamation League, the Oath Keepers are “a large but loosely organized collection of right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the militia movement, which believes that the federal government has been coopted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights''.
He was also spotted on surveillance video carrying a pepper-based bear repellent, an extra-strength form of pepper spray.
The six charges Schaffer is facing are:
1) Knowingly Entering or Remaining in any Restricted Building or Grounds Without Lawful Authority
2) Disrupting the Orderly Conduct of Government Business
3) Knowingly Engages in an Act of Physical Violence Against any Person or Property in any Restricted Building or Grounds
4) Violent Entry and Disorderly Conduct in a Capitol Building
5) Engage in an Act of Physical Violence in a Capitol Building
6) Parade, Demonstrate, or Picket in a Capitol Building
While Schaffer has not commented on his involvement within the insurrection, the remaining members of Iced Earth declared their opposition in the following statement:
"We absolutely DO NOT condone nor do we support riots or the acts of violence that the rioters were involved in on January 6th at the US Capitol building. We hope that all those involved that day are brought to justice to be investigated and answer for their actions."
