A recent incident involving a Jan. 6 rioter, Jon Mellis, unfolded outside the Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center on Saturday, drawing attention due to its chaotic nature. Mellis, who previously made headlines after being ejected from Spencer Pratt’s election night gathering, faced a hostile encounter with anti-ICE demonstrators, an event captured on video.
Mellis, known online as @PatriotWildMan, was targeted by a group of masked protesters who repeatedly taunted him, calling him a “pedophile worshipper.” As tensions escalated, the protesters chased Mellis and allegedly doused him with gasoline, adding to the intensity of the confrontation. Despite the violent scene, Mellis managed to escape, although the video suggests he suffered several blows to the head during the pursuit.
Reflecting on the incident, Mellis recounted, “My friend and I attended the anti-ICE protest, concealing our identities with masks. We even told those who inquired that we were associated with the DNC. Initially, we conducted a few interviews without issues until some protesters recognized me, despite my disguise, due to my distinctive curly hair and online presence. They began shouting ‘Proud Boy,’ and soon the crowd turned hostile, throwing objects, attacking, and pouring gas.”
The chaotic episode was documented by Eoin Richard, a cameraman with experience covering protests in various cities including Washington, Chicago, and Minneapolis. His footage captured the frenzied moments in downtown Los Angeles, providing a glimpse into the volatile encounter that unfolded.
“We were doing interviews, I got maybe two or three interviews in before [protesters] recognized me with my mask on, just because I have curly hair and I’m kind of viral, so they started yelling, ‘Proud Boy, Proud Boy,’ and and then everybody started coming toward me, immediately throwing things, attacking, pouring gas.”
Cameraman Eoin Richard, who has covered protests in Washington, Chicago and Minneapolis, filmed the Saturday altercation in downtown LA.
He claimed to the The Post those who attacked him were Antifa protesters.
“We were there to film a protest being held for the one-year anniversary of the ICE raids,” Richard said. “I’ve been covering it for over a year now. … Jon was getting some interviews with protesters, very nonpartisan, just simple stuff like, ‘Hey, why are you on the ground?’ After about two interviews, we were swarmed. He was warmed.”
The video captures the mob’s aggression, with masked individuals lunging at Mellis and Richard outside the ICE detention facility.
“It happened so quickly,” Richard said, “but basically we wrapped up one interview, and then a woman with a bullhorn came and started shouting in [Mellis’s] face a bunch of different things, and probably five seconds after that, masked Antifa approached him, one with a chemical of some sort, trying to dump it on him.
“He was doused and as he was trying to push the gallon of liquid away, a guy punches him in the face.”
Richard recounts how when things turned violent they both ran for their lives, “literally as a mob of people sprinted behind,” trying to attack and beat them.
“They were even trying to attack police,” Richard claimed.
After the two men made it to safety away from the violent group, they made contact with LA police, who placed Mellis in handcuffs in the back of a police car and escorted him to his vehicle, although he says he was not placed under arrest.
“He didn’t pat me down, he didn’t search me, and he said I wasn’t being detained,” Mellis recounted. “He saw what happened, so I wasn’t in any trouble at all. He simply drove to my car because we’re on the verge of a riot.”
Following the incident, Richard claimed DHS was deployed to the protest, with ABC 7 reporting that some arrests were made.
The Post reached out to the LAPD, who could not confirm if any arrests and detainments made during Saturday’s anti-ICE protests were in connection to Mellis’s dousing.
Mellis pleaded guilty to assaulting an officer at the Capitol Building in the January 6, 2021 riot.
He spent four years in federal prison before being pardoned by President Trump, and is now a full-time conservative influencer.
He was removed by security at Spencer Pratt election-night event after turning up uninvited.
“I love Spencer, totally supported him, but those security guys, that was assault. You have no right to touch somebody, push somebody, or move somebody when they’re on public property. I don’t care if he’s doing a press conference or not.”
Saturday’s anti-ICE protest highlights growing concerns over left-wing political violence across the US, particularly targeting conservatives and those supporting immigration enforcement.
Critics argue that Antifa’s repeated acts of intimidation and assault go largely unpunished in Democrat strongholds like Los Angeles, contributing to a climate of fear for those exercising their First Amendment rights.
“It’s just totally not fair, you know, to use violence in this way. I just find it disgusting, and it was one of the scariest moments of my life,” Richard told The Post.
