Los Angeles-based actor Siaka Massaquoi was arrested Thursday night
at a Los Angeles airport on four misdemeanor charges related to his
peaceful participation in protests in Washington, D.C. on January 6,
2021. Massaquoi and his pregnant wife were returning from Nashville,
where they attended the premiere of the Daily Wire's new film
"Ladyballers."
Massaquoi,
who ran for the California State Assembly in 2022, currently serves as
the first vice-chair of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County. He
is also a RedState columnist.
Although
the charges (trespassing, parading, and disorderly conduct) are
misdemeanors, FBI agents took Siaka to jail, where he was kept overnight
until being released on a $1,000 OR bond at the end of the day Friday.
Siaka Massaquoi embraces his wife and supporters after being released from jail. (CREDIT: Roxanne Hoge, used with permission)
On January 6 Massaquoi went to the Capitol after attending a rally. Video shows the extent of his involvement:
Witness why I was raided 2 years ago and recently arrested and charged Nov 30th 2023 almost 3 years later https://t.co/0YH97WqftF
— Siaka Massaquoi (@_SiakaMassaquoi) December 2, 2023
Siaka's North Hollywood home was raided in June 2021
by "about 20 agents armed and outfitted in tactical gear shortly before
6 a.m." one Friday morning. His roommate's two sons, ages 3 and 7, were
at the home when it was raided. Siaka was not charged at the time and
eventually filed a Bivens suit against the FBI. That suit was dismissed in August 2023.
The
Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said yesterday that if an actor
whose home was raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation based on
his attendance at the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally in the District of
Columbia is to receive redress, it must come from the Executive Branch,
not the courts.
A three-judge panel—comprised of Ninth Circuit
Judges Morgan Christen and Jennifer Sung and Senior Judge A. Wallace
Tashima—affirmed the dismissal of a Fourth Amendment claim by Siaka
Massaquoi, the first vice-chair of the Los Angeles County Republican
Central Committee who ran unsuccessfully last year for the state
Assembly.
Dismissal of his claims under the First and Fifth Amendments was previously summarily affirmed by a Ninth Circuit motions panel.
After the raid, Siaka found that he'd been placed on a secret government list similar to a terrorist watch list. Back in 2022 Siaka told our Bob Hoge about the process he and his wife had to go through each time they fly, even before he was charged with any crime.
"Every
single time I fly I have to check in at the front, I can’t do check-in
online. It takes about 45 minutes for them to do their phone calls and
talk to whoever and they give me a ticket that has four S’s on it — that
means you have go through security—they put that on my bag, meaning the
bag i check, and I go to security. As soon as I get up there, 'bing!'
"They
pull me to the side, and when they eventually get to me, however long
that takes, they tell they’re going to pat me down. They pat me down
front and back, they check my bag and all that stuff, my carry-on, then I
go to the gate… and when I’m waiting at the gate, now TSA shows up to
do the exact same thing they just did when they checked earlier."
The
TSA agent indicates that she won’t subject them to another search “if
we escort you directly onto the plane. So now we could walk with them,
but we have to go straight to the plane, can’t stop to the bathroom,
can’t get food can’t even sit down and just relax.”
After Babylon Bee's Seth Dillon posted about Siaka's arrest Elon Musk weighed in, saying, "This has gone too far."
Reached at home Sunday, Siaka said:
I'm so grateful
to Jesus for being with me and my family throughout this unbelievable
event. He took care of my wife Charlotte and me while we were separated,
and I know His hands were all over getting me back to her. It is
heartbreaking and unfortunate for all that we are living in an America
like this. We are at a fork in the road for our nation and its future. I
pray moments like mine and many others, that have gone unseen, will
sober us back to the foundations of what made the promise of this
country great.
Charlotte and I are so grateful for all the love
and support we have received so far and know we will get through this
with God's grace. Thank you for your prayers and support.
One
of Siaka's last tweets before being dragged away from his wife by
federal agents is chilling, in retrospect. Sharing a story about the DOJ
ordering a sweep of Twitter data for people who liked Donald Trump's
tweets, Siaka sarcastically wrote, "No, the Biden regime isn't
weaponizing the government against Americans."
No the Biden regime isn't weaponizing the government against Americans https://t.co/2LdduLxfOL
— Siaka Massaquoi (@_SiakaMassaquoi) November 29, 2023
Siaka's next court hearing is Thursday, December 7, in Los Angeles. Contributions to his legal fund can be made here.
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