A pardoned Jan. 6 rioter was convicted of sexually abusing children

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On Tuesday, a jury in Hernando County, Fla., found Andrew Paul Johnson guilty of five charges, including molesting a child under 12 and another under 16, as well as lewd and lascivious exhibition. .

William Forgie, the chief assistant state attorney for the fifth judicial circuit in Florida, told NPR in an email that Johnson "faces up to life in prison" when he is sentenced in March. An attorney for Johnson did not respond to a phone message seeking comment.

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Andrew Paul Johnson, a Florida handyman who received a pardon from President Trump for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, has been convicted of multiple state charges of child molestation and exposing himself to children, prosecutors told NPR. Andrew Paul Johnson, the pardoned rioter, attempted to bribe one victim with money he claimed he would receive as part of restitution for Jan. 6 defendants, police reported. The conviction is the latest case of a pardoned Capitol rioter committing new crimes after receiving a pardon.

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Johnson also attempted to keep one victim quiet by claiming he would receive $10 million from the Trump administration as restitution for former Jan. 6 defendants and would share the money with the victim in his will, according to the police report.

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