Who Is Daniel Tocci? Rioter Sentenced After Failed Trump Pardon Defence and Discovery of 110,000 Illicit Images

Daniel Tocci, a 31-year-old Amherst, Massachusetts man pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role in the 6 January 2021 Capitol riot, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison after FBI agents found more than 110,000 images and videos of child sexual abuse material on his devices while investigating his part in the attack.

The case traces back to a routine traffic stop. In January 2023, a Hadley, Massachusetts police officer recognised Tocci from photographs taken during the Capitol breach and shared the image with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Agents confirmed his identity in multiple screenshots from inside and outside the building.

In November 2023, the FBI executed search warrants at Tocci's apartment and on his electronic devices. They were looking for evidence connected to the 6 January attack. What they found went far beyond the riot.

Across a laptop and five thumb drives, investigators recovered over 110,000 files of child sexual abuse material. Roughly 10,000 were on his laptop and more than 100,000 on the drives. Victims were as young as three years old, and some of the files depicted sadistic conduct and the sexual exploitation of toddlers.

Violent Content and Disturbing Searches

Federal prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo that Tocci's laptop also contained 'extremely disturbing images of violent acts,' including footage of a cat being killed in a blender, a male shooting a female in the head, a dog being beaten to death, and images of severed limbs and bestiality. The US Department of Justice (DOJ) described him as a 'particularly dangerous individual.'

Court records also revealed Google searches related to child sexual abuse on Tocci's devices, including queries about 'countries with legal prostitution under 18.'

The Failed Pardon Defence

Trump pardoned Tocci in January 2025 along with roughly 1,500 other 6 January defendants. His defence attorney then moved to dismiss the child pornography charges, arguing that 'all the evidence' stemmed from the now-pardoned Capitol case and should be treated as 'fruit of the poisonous tree.'

'The case against Mr Tocci must be dismissed because the entirety of the evidence stems from a warrant that, according to President Trump, should never have issued,' his attorney wrote in a July 2025 court filing.

However, Tocci's legal team voluntarily withdrew the motion 10 days after filing it. Tocci subsequently pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography in September 2025.

A Legal Precedent With Wider Implications

US District Judge Mark G. Mastroianni sentenced Tocci on 25 March 2026 to four years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. The government had recommended 70 months. The DOJ's own press release about the sentencing made no mention of Tocci's 6 January connection.

The case also exposed a striking inconsistency in how Trump's Justice Department handled evidence from Capitol riot searches. The DOJ argued that gun crime cases tied to 6 January warrants should be dismissed, but it fought to preserve child pornography prosecutions like Tocci's. In a separate case, Trump re-pardoned 6 January defendant Dan Wilson over a firearms conviction that stemmed from his Capitol siege investigation.

Tocci is not an isolated case. At least six pardoned 6 January defendants have been charged with child sex crimes, according to a Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) analysis. Another pardoned rioter, Andrew Paul Johnson, was sentenced to life in prison in March 2026 after being convicted of child molestation.

Tocci's case sets a marker for all 1,500 pardoned defendants whose homes and devices were searched during the Capitol investigation. A presidential pardon can wipe a conviction, but it can't shield what investigators find along the way.