A Canadian real estate agent has received almost a thousand harassing calls, emails and messages from angry Americans mistaking her for a woman who stormed the U.S. Capitol and happens to share her name, occupation and even hair colour.
Jenna Ryan in Sudbury, Ont. wants the world to know she is not the same Jenna Ryan from Texas whose Twitter profile brags that she took a private jet to Washington, D.C. to “march” for U.S. President Donald Trump, and was subsequently arrested by the FBI for her involvement in the insurrection.
“From the day that Texas Jenna Ryan was identified at the Capitol, I’ve been receiving numerous comments from my social media platforms, along with negative Google reviews and angry voicemails and texts,” the Canadian Ryan told HuffPost Canada through Facebook messenger.
“Things seemed to have quieted down last week, until Texas Jenna Ryan was arrested. We are back to non-stop harsh comments and phone calls, mostly people telling me to enjoy prison.”
Some people mistook the Canadian Ryan’s Instagram account for that of “Texas Jenna Ryan,” calling her names and commenting with profanities.
One Facebook user wrote on her business page: “You belong in jail.” Another said, apparently after realizing he had the wrong person, “Damn I thought you were the terrorist.”
The Texan Ryan is facing intense backlash for documenting her participation in the insurrection on social media. However, her many photos and videos — in at least one instance she said her full name and job title — led authorities right to her.
Her posts show her boarding a private jet bound for Washington, D.C. with captions indicating she was going to participate in the attack of the Capitol, according to a criminal complaint filed by investigators on Jan. 15, the day she was arrested.
In the hours leading up to the insurrection, Jenna Ryan posted a video of herself in front of a bathroom mirror saying, “We’re gonna go down and storm the Capitol,” the complaint said. She also posted a video of herself entering the Capitol building with a mob of Trump supporters, windows smashed around them.
Later in the day, she posted to Twitter, “We just stormed the Capitol. It was one of the best days of my life.”
She was charged with entering a restricted building without permission, as well as disrupting the orderly function of government. She turned herself in and then asked Trump for a pardon during a CBS interview.
Watch: Jenna Ryan said she listened to the president when she went to the U.S. Capitol and now feels wronged. Story continues below.
Canadian Ryan said she is currently focused on damage control, rather than deactivating her accounts. Social media is a key part of her business.
“My team and I have been doing the best we can to respond and address everyone, letting them know they have the wrong Jenna Ryan, but some still choose to argue it,” she said.
“Thankfully, when most people realize they have the wrong girl, they are very quick to apologize and delete their comment.”
She said she’s received support from brokerages and agents across both Canada and the U.S.
Some Americans have come to her defence online.
“Hello Americans, let’s try to stop embarrassing ourselves even further,” wrote one Facebook user. “To this realty team. I’m very sorry you have to deal with this. We are a country in crisis and it’s making us Americans a little nuttier than normal.”