INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – A Hoosier convicted for his role in the January 6 Capitol riot is still being detained in Canada, despite a pardon from President Donald Trump. 

The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia filed a motion to dismiss charges against Antony Vo, this week, citing President Trump’s sweeping pardon to all January 6 defendants. 

Vo was a student at IU Bloomington when he joined the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C. that turned into a riot at the U.S. Capitol. A federal judge ordered Vo to serve nine months in prison after he was convicted on charges for nonviolent offenses. 

Claiming his prosecution was politically motivated, Vo refused to report to prison.

Instead, he escaped to Canada last year to seek asylum. After spending more than six months going through the refugee process, the Canada Border Services Agency arrested Vo on Jan. 6, 2025 (the four-year anniversary of the Capitol attack), telling News 8 there was no record of him entering the country legally. 

Robert Tibbo, the attorney representing Vo in Canada, told News 8 that Canada’s minister of public safety has advised immigration officials that Vo was not actually pardoned for his Jan. 6 convictions. 

“It’s that excuse that’s being used in part to detain him,” Tibbo said, stating Vo’s detainment is “unlawful.”

If Vo rescinds his refugee application, Canadian authorities will most likely send him back to the U.S., according to Tibbo. 

So, why not stop the refugee process and return home? 

President Trump’s pardon covers “offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.” This month, federal prosecutors filed a new charge against Vo for failure to surrender. It’s not clear if the pardon covers the latest charge, though Tibbo believes it will be dismissed. So, Vo is waiting until it’s certain he won’t face arrest before attempting a return to the U.S. 

Even before receiving a pardon from President Trump, Vo was outspoken in his belief the Jan. 6 prosecutions were “politicized and corrupted.” News 8 was the first to interview Vo about his prosecution, but he went on to speak to reporters for the New York Times and international outlets in Canada.

“Whenever one puts themselves in the public spotlight as Antony has done, you can become an easier target, and I think that’s a reality,” Tibbo said. “I’ve had American clients in the past, and it was a similar situation.”

Tibbo previously represented whistleblower Edward Snowden. 

“But I think Antony’s result in the end is going to be a very positive one,” Tibbo said. 

Now, despite having a pardon in the U.S., Vo is still detained in Canada with a hearing on his refugee status planned on Wednesday. 

Antony’s mother, Annie Vo, was with her son on Jan. 6, 2021, and also faced charges for the Capitol riot. A judge dismissed Annie’s charges on Tuesday, citing the President’s pardon. 

Since escaping his prison sentence in the U.S., Vo has come to believe a government conspiracy caused the chaos during the certification of the 2020 presidential vote. He has called for members of the Jan. 6 committee to be imprisoned and said the actions of U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, who presided over his case and others, amounts to treason.