A New York City pickup artist accused of bringing firearms to Washington, D.C., and participating in the “violent” Capitol insurrection—then later bragging about it on social media—has been arrested.
Samuel Fisher, a 35-year-old who also goes by the name “Brad Holiday,” was arrested Wednesday on several charges, including disorderly conduct on restricted grounds and unlawful entry. According to the New York Daily News, Fisher was taken into custody on the Upper East Side and had with him an arsenal of ammunition, tactical gear, two machetes, an American flag, and at least one shotgun.
Prosecutors allege Fisher traveled to D.C with “multiple firearms and a bulletproof vest,” though it is not immediately clear if he carried them inside the Capitol. Fisher also posted several photos and social media messages while at the riots. During a Wednesday court hearing, Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron denied Fisher’s request for bail, stating that he presents a clear danger to the community.
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Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Schrier argued that detention was “necessary” because Fisher had “incentive to flee” and suggested that more series charges against him may be coming soon. Fisher’s public defender insisted her client’s “political beliefs are not a crime.”
The day after the attack on the Capitol, Fisher, who operates “LuxLife Dating Coach,” went on Facebook to brag about his role in the insurrection. After being asked if he went on the “frontlines” of the riot, he answered, “It was awesome. It was dangerous and violent. People died...but it was fucking great if you ask me….i got tear-gassed and pepper-sprayed.”
“Seeing cops literally run ... was the coolest thing ive ever seen in my life,” Fisher added. “Cant divulge too much here...but fuck the DC police. In all seriousness and get ready.”
Federal investigators were eventually tipped off to Fisher’s identity by an informant. The informant sent a photo of Fisher in front of a flag that reads, “Don’t Tread on Trump, Keep America Great.” The photo is captioned, “Can’t wait to bring a liberal back to this freedom palace.”
According to a criminal complaint, Fisher began posting about his intent to travel to D.C. for Trump’s rally in December, stating in a Facebook post, “we must stand up to these people and take our world back” and “It’s time to bring the pain upon them.” In another New Years’ Eve post, Fisher revealed he was planning to “exercise my 2A legal rights” during the Jan. 6 rally.
In an online essay titled “January 6, 2021, will be the most important day of our lives,” Fisher goes into detail about the need to face off “Communists or Satanists that have blackmailed, bribed, and influenced almost every member of our Government, Media, Educational system, etc.” The essay was written on Fisher’s blog under his online alias “Brad Holiday.”
“Tomorrow, Trump and We The People will be betrayed again by every so-called representative who said they’d fight for us,” the post reads, according to the criminal complaint. “Trump just needs to fire the bat signal….deputize patriots… and then the pain comes. 1 Million Pissed off men with guns...bad idea.”
The New York resident also operates a pickup artist coaching service devoted to helping men land dates—all for the low price of $150. It was not immediately clear, however, how many people have used the service.
On a LinkedIn page under his own name but associated with the email brad.holiday1@gmail.com, Fisher identified himself as the founder of LIFE: MTKG + MDA, and claims “We Help Chiropractors Get More High Quality Patients With Facebook Ad Campaigns.”
Fisher’s “Brad Holiday” inhabited some of the web’s darkest and most toxic corners, relentlessly promoting his services as a dating coach and pickup artist on Reddit, Telegram, and assorted message boards under the handle “1GirlDaily.” On YouTube, he sat in front of a Trump campaign flag or wore a “Make America Great Again” hat while delivering rants with titles like “You Don’t Need to Coexist” and “Satanic Ritual Abuse”—posts oddly intermingled with reviews of skincare products.
On the now-defunct social media platform Parler, he signal-boosted baseless conspiracy theories about vote fraud and 2020 election theft.
But on his personal website BradHoliday.com, things take a far darker turn: In November 2020, he posted the notorious “Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion,” the infamous forgery used to justify pogroms and genocide against Jewish people.
“The following is a playbook written a long time ago about how the Cabal (Kaballah Subscribers) will gain their goal of ultimate power and control over the human race,” Fisher wrote in a brief preface. “Their father is Leucifer [sic] and they are the sons of Cain.”
In October 2020, he was still promoting the debunked “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory, which posits that Clinton aide John Podesta ran a child sex trafficking ring out of the basement of Comet Pizza in Washington, D.C. And a post from December began with the sentence “QAnon is legit,” thus aligning himself with the movement that falsely predicted that Trump would round up and arrest supposed Satan-worshipping cannibalistic pedophiles who they believe run much of the United States.
As late as Jan. 9, three days after the riots, he wrote a post with the title “[President] Joe Biden (and his family) Are Degenerate Criminal Pedophiles.”
