Pardoned Capitol rioter arrested after videos show man touching women’s hair on Metro trains
A man who pleaded guilty to charges related to his participation in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, and was then pardoned, was arrested Monday night after videos that went viral reportedly showed him touching female passengers’ hair on Metro trains in the D.C. area.
Bryan Betancur, 28, of Silver Spring, Maryland, is charged with assault and battery in connection with an offense that happened Sunday on a Silver Line train servicing the Clarendon station. Police did not confirm that incident was directly tied to the videos circulating online.
According to several posts and videos from different users on X, Betancur livestreamed himself secretly touching random women’s hair while riding Metro. One post includes a screenshot of a message reportedly from Betancur that indicates the woman gave him permission to touch her hair.
Another video shows a livestream from an account called “Bryan On Task.” In the livestream, a man who the X user says is Betancur is seen touching another woman’s hair and filming his surroundings in a Metro station in Arlington.
After those and several other posts from users expressing concern about Betancur, Metro Transit Police posted Monday they were aware of the videos “depicting inappropriate behavior toward Metro customers.” On Tuesday, the department replied to that post with an update that Betancur had been arrested and charged with assault and battery.
Betancur pleaded guilty and was sentenced in August 2022 to four months in prison and a year of supervised release on charges connected to his participation in the U.S. Capitol riot. President Donald Trump later issued a sweeping pardon of nearly all rioters, including Betancur.
According to charging documents in his Capitol riot arrest, Betancur is a self-professed white supremacist who has made comments about carrying out a school shooting and has researched mass shootings.
He’s also been previously convicted of burglary and violating an anti-stalking order, according to court records.
Metro Transit Police asked anyone with information about Betancur to contact the department by calling 202-962-2121 or texting “MyMTPD” (696873).