29 January 2025 , 11:18
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An Indiana man who was pardoned by US President Donald Trump over the US Capitol riot was killed by police during a traffic stop days later.
Matthew Huttle, 42, was shot and killed on Sunday when police pulled his vehicle over, and he allegedly resisted and ended up in an "altercation" with an officer, an Indiana State Police (ISP) statement said.
It remains unclear what he was being arrested for. Police added that Huttle had a firearm in his possession during the traffic stop.
Huttle was one of nearly 1,600 people who were last week given pardons or commutations by Trump for their roles in the riot on 6 January 2021 - when Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol building in Washington DC.
Indiana police said the officer involved in the shooting was placed on paid administrative leave.
"For full transparency, I requested the Indiana State Police to investigate this officer involved shooting," Jasper County Sheriff Patrick Williamson said.
Huttle, and his uncle Dale Huttle, were among the hundreds of people who sentenced for storming the Capitol more than four years ago.
Huttle was in the US Capitol for some ten minutes during the riot and was ultimately sentenced to six months in prison as part of a plea deal. He was released from custody in July 2024.
His uncle previously said he had no regrets about taking part in the riot: "I’m not ashamed of being there. It was our duty as patriots."
This is not the first case of a 6 January rioter facing trouble with the law following their pardon. Another of the group, Daniel Bell of Florida, was rearrested on federal gun charges last week.
Both Huttle and Bell were among the hundreds of 6 January defendants who had their charges dismissed by Trump during his first day back in the White House.
Among those who had their charges dismissed were some leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers - far-right organisations at the forefront of the riot.
"These people have been destroyed," Trump said while announcing the pardons. "What they’ve (the justice system) done to these people is outrageous. There’s rarely been anything like it in the history of our country."
But some have been critical of Trump’s pardoning of the rioters.
Over the weekend, Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, said it was a "mistake" to pardon or commute the sentences of "people who went into the Capitol and beat up a police officer violently".