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Utah activist claims he was just documenting US Capitol insurgence

Sullivan Video.jpg
Posted at 8:52 AM, Jan 09, 2021
and last updated 2021-01-09 13:03:20-05

WASHINGTON — A Utah resident who was among those who breached the US Capitol Wednesday says he was there solely to document the event.

John Sullivan, a civil rights activist, claims he attended the protest and broke into the Capitol along with Trump supporters only as a way to give a true view of what was occurring.

"I was there to record," said Sullivan in a video posted to Periscope Friday. "I was there to let people see that situation in the best possible way."

WARNING: Language in the following video may not be appropriate for some.

Sullivan is the founder of Insurgence USA, an activist group formed after the killing of George Floyd in the summer of 2020.

"We want to build local powers to enable the community to intervene in violence enacted by the state and government vigilantes. Our mission is the unification of our nation because a people united will never be divided." the group says on its website.

Sullivan told FOX News he attends protests across the country to record what's going on, but did not actively partake in the insurgence in Washington, although he admitted to climbing through a window to gain access to the Capitol.

WARNING: Language in the following video may not be appropriate for some.

Sullivan said he doesn't support Trump or Biden, and while he believes that that black lives matter, he is not a member of the Black Lives Matter organization.

"I just wanted to be able to show people how it was, and I knew I would be able to get to the truth and to the front and be able to show you, I'm talking to these people, I'm conversing with these people in the crowd, but I can't tell you that I agree with Trump or MAGA supporters," Sullivan said. "I can tell you I don't."

Sullivan said he was near Ashli Babbitt when she was shot and killed in the Capitol building, but being able to show her death was why he was in DC.

"How would you have a clear vision of this woman getting shot by this officer that was in there and she was dying?" asks Sullivan in the video. "What proof or evidence, other than body cam video that can be easily deleted."

"This is what everyone needed to see."

Sullivan goes on to say his documentation disproves those who claim Antifa members dressed as Trump supporters were actually the ones who invaded the building.

"In my footage, clear as day, Antifa is not out there doing that." said Sullivan, who added that he is not a member of Antifa.

Sullivan, who spoke from a hotel room in Washington, claims that he was detained and questioned by the FBI and protests since the protests, but was not charged with any crime.

In June, Sullivan was arrested for organizing a protest in Provo where a person was shot.