A member of the far-right Proud Boys group pleaded guilty on Wednesday to obstructing police officers when he joined the January 6, 2021 uprising in the US Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump in an attempt to undo his electoral defeat.
The plea agreement, filed in federal court in Washington, calls on Louis Enrique Colon of Missouri to plead guilty to only one felony and to cooperate with prosecutors.
Colon admitted that he crossed police barricades during the riot before climbing a wall to gain access to a higher level of the Capitol.
While in the Capitol building, Colon used his hands and chair to stop police officers from trying to pull down retractable doors to stop rebels from entering the building.
The attack was followed by a rally led by Trump near the White House, in which he called on thousands gathered to move to the Capitol and fight “like hell” as the two houses of Congress rallied to mark Joe Biden’s victory over Trump in the 2020 election.
Biden’s victory was confirmed in the early hours of the next day after lawmakers, officials and journalists fled their lives during the deadly Capitol riot.
The 45-year-old Colon was indicted in February 2021, along with four other members of the Proud Boys subway in Kansas City. He is the first defendant in this case to plead guilty.
A judge had imposed conditions for Colon’s observation while he awaited trial. Colon will be convicted later this year and faces a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $ 250,000.
He will probably receive a reduced sentence for acknowledging responsibility and cooperating.
Colon was not charged in the same conspiracy as Enrique Tario, the former chairman of the Proud Boys and one of the most famous of the 800 people facing criminal charges related to the riot.
Colon’s request comes two weeks after Proud Boys leader Charles Donoha pleaded guilty to obstructing official proceedings and assaulting and obstructing police officers.
Meanwhile, in another criminal case, one of dozens of police officers injured in the uprising testified Wednesday that he did not punch or fight a retired New York City police officer accused of assaulting an employee.
Thomas Webster, whose trial for assault began this week, claims he acted in self-defense when he collided with Metropolitan Police Officer Noah Rathban in front of the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Rathban said he reached out with an open left hand and pushed Webster in the face after the New York man pushed his bike rack. Rutban said he was trying to move Webster back from the security perimeter that staff are struggling to maintain behind rows of bicycle racks.
“It’s unfortunate to be in the nation’s capital and to be treated like that by another citizen,” Rathban said during the second day of the Webster trial.
Footage shown by prosecutors shows Webster pushing a rack of bicycles in Rathban before swinging a flagpole at the officer in a downward motion, hitting a metal barricade in front of a police officer.
After Rathban grabbed the broken rod and withdrew, Webster lunged at the officer and knocked him to the ground.
Rathban said he began to suffocate and could not breathe when Webster grabbed a gas mask and the chin strap pressed against the officer’s neck.
Apart from hundreds of prosecutions, a special committee of the House of Representatives is investigating all sorts of connections between Trump, his team in the White House, Republicans in Congress and the uprising.
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