Another pardoned Jan. 6 rioter to admit guilt in child sexual abuse case

Justice DepartmentAnother pardoned Jan. 6 rioter to admit guilt in child sexual abuse caseDavid Daniel has reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors after a judge ruled that President Donald Trump's pardons in the Capitol attack did not apply to child exploitation.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Rioters gather outside of the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.Tayfun Coskun / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images fileShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 14, 2026, 5:25 PM EDTBy Ryan J. ReillyAnother Jan. 6 rioter pardoned by President Donald Trump will plead guilty in a separate case involving child exploitation of multiple victims, according to federal court records. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.David Daniel has reached a plea agreement in connection with a pending charge of sexual exploitation of a minor and possessing sexually explicit images of children in federal court in the Western District of North Carolina. According to court documents signed by Daniel’s lawyer Tuesday, in 2015 and 2016 Daniel enticed a minor under the age of 12 “to engage in sexually explicit conduct” for the purpose of producing “a visual depiction” of the conduct.David Paul Daniel at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.United States CourtsThe details of Daniel's case emerged in part as investigators probed his involvement in the Capitol attack. Prosecutors said he convinced another minor victim to engage in “sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing” a visual depiction of the conduct, authorities said. That victim was under the age of 18. It's not clear yet when he might be sentenced. Last year, just before Trump took office and gave mass clemency to Jan. 6 defendants including Daniel, he admitted that he assaulted law enforcement during the Capitol breach. Daniel had been arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 attack in November 2023. Other pardoned Jan. 6 defendants have been convic...