An amateur porn “personality” from Roseville who allegedly bragged online about participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 siege on the U.S. Capitol has been charged with several crimes related to the insurrection, according to a criminal case unsealed Tuesday.
The case against Paul Caloia, 33, shows him wearing a Detroit Red Wings hat and a white mask inside the Capitol during the siege and include screengrabs of surveillance footage of Caloia and a video he posted online showing him inside the Capitol, talking about being in the “wrong room at the wrong time.”
The Caloia case describes the colorful backstory of a Macomb County man who is among approximately 25 people from Michigan — and more than 1,100 nationwide — charged with crimes related to the siege that involved supporters of former President Donald Trump breaking into the Capitol, ransacking offices, overwhelming and assaulting police officers and sending lawmakers into hiding as Congress tried to certify the 2020 Electoral College vote count. The group includes former Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley, who is serving a 60-day federal prison sentence in a low-security prison in Wisconsin.
The case was unsealed in federal court in Washington D.C. one week after Caloia initially appeared in court in Detroit. He was released on $10,000 unsecured bond in a case charging him with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct; disorderly conduct and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
Caloia’s court-appointed lawyer, James Gerometta, declined comment.
Court records show the FBI received a tip on Jan. 12, 2021, less than one week after the siege, that led to Caloia being identified as one of the rioters. The tip involved an “Internet pornography personality” known as God Hypnotic bragging on Skype about participating in the riots and being inside the Capitol during the Skype chat.
The tipster told investigators they interacted with God Hypnotic via email and an invitation-only chat. During the chat, someone asked why God Hypnotic went to the Capitol.
God Hypnotic “said he went to the Capitol for reporting purposes,” according to the court filing.
A separate tipster shared photographs of Twitter user @CashHypnotic and said they believed the Twitter user resembled someone in the Capitol during the riot who had been labeled “Insider 805” by the online group Sedition Hunters.
FBI agents obtained Twitter account information that showed the registered phone number matched the number Caloia listed in a 2021 police report, according to the criminal case.
Caloia’s cell phone number is linked to other social media accounts using variations of the same nickname, including Godhypnotic, Cashgodhypnotic and Cash Hypnotic.
A review of the Twitter account photos and videos led the FBI to conclude that “Insider 805” is Caloia.
In one Twitter post, Caloia advertises his Skype account under the name “God Hypnotic” that also identifies his accounts on xHamster — a porn site.
The tips led the U.S. Capitol Police to review surveillance footage and identify Caloia as someone who likely entered the Capitol.
“The footage shows Caloia wearing a blue and red plaid shirt, black hoodie, gray scarf, a green backpack, and khaki pants,” according to the criminal case. “In surveillance and publicly available footage from January 6, he is often, but not always, wearing a red Detroit Red Wings hat and a white mask that ties with strings around the back of his head.”
In October 2022, investigators surveilled Caloia at his home in Roseville. They concluded the man seen outside the home was the same person inside the Capitol during the siege.
In March, investigators tried to interview Caloia at his home but he refused to talk or open the door, according to the criminal case.
Investigators also obtained a search warrant for his cell phone. Phone records showed Caloia made 24 phone calls from Jan. 5-6, most of which originated in Washington D.C.
A second witness told investigators that they went to high school with Caloia. The witness shared a video that Caloia had posted online showing Caloia inside the Capitol.
“They came in with like, guns and s—, like ARs, and they have us face down on the ground,” Caloia says in the video. “They’re like, securing this room. I would leave, but they have to secure the building and I’m just in the wrong room dude. Wrong room at the wrong time.”
Open source photos and videos led investigators to determine that Caloia entered the Capitol building and roamed for approximately 40 minutes during the siege.
“In total, Caloia entered at least three different floors of the Capitol building and was on Capitol grounds for at least two hours,” according to the criminal case.
Footage shows Caloia entering through a broken window next to the Senate wing doors at around 2:22 p.m.
The footage shows Caloia turn south and enter a room near the Capitol Crypt. He also is seen walking toward the House of Representatives’ side of the Capitol building.
“Based on my training and experience, Caloia appears to be chanting along with the mob and recording on his cell phone,” according to the criminal case.
Caloia also is shown on surveillance footage walking upstairs and entering several areas, including Statutory Hall before heading to an exit with his hands above his head in a “don’t shoot” gesture, according to the FBI.
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