Capitol rioter in ‘Camp Auschwitz’ sweatshirt identified
Virginia man Robert Keith Packer, 56, wore a shirt which also said 'Work Brings Freedom', a translation of the Nazis' infamous 'Arbeit Macht Frei' sign
The man who stormed the U.S. Capitol wearing an antisemitic sweatshirt reading “Camp Auschwitz” has been identified as a 56-year-old Virginia man named Robert Keith Packer.
CNN identified Packer, whose shirt also said “Work Brings Freedom,” a rough translation of the phrase that greeted Jewish prisoners arriving at the Nazi concentration camp. The back of the sweatshirt said “Staff.”
Packer’s photo has circulated in reports of the mob, whose violent storming of the Capitol Wednesday led to the deaths of five people, including a police officer. He appeared perhaps most prominently in a report by ITV, in which his shirt — one of many extremist symbols present — is clearly visible as he stands behind people who are holding a torn piece of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office nameplate.
Some people who stormed the Capitol, including a West Virginia lawmaker, have been arrested, while the storming has upended the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump, who incited the mob.
Packer was described as “offbeat” and “extreme” by people who spoke with CNN. Virginia records show that he has three convictions for driving under the influence and another for forging public records. Someone told CNN he worked as a welder and pipe-fitter.
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