Father, son plead guilty to Jan. 6 Capitol charges

WASHINGTON (UPI) — A father and son duo face up to five years in prison after they pleaded guilty Tuesday to federal charges stemming from last year’s Jan. 6 siege of the Capitol building. Federal prosecutors said in a statement that Daryl Johnson, 51, of Ansgar, Iowa, and his son, Daniel Johnson, 29, of Austin, Minn., each pleaded guilty in a D.C. courtroom to a charge of civil disorder. On Jan. 6, 2021, supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol building in an effort to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States, resulting in the deaths of five people, some 140 law enforcement injured and more than $1.4 million in damages to the facility. According to court documents, the Johnsons entered the Capitol that day through a broken window next to the Senate Wing Door and remained inside for about 26 minutes. During that time, they encountered a line of law enforcement officers on the second floor attempting to prevent rioters from entering the East Rotunda doors, and along with others they rushed the line of officers and succeeded in opening the doors, allowing rioters to enter the building. Both were either at or near the front of the group of rioters when the doors were forced open, prosecutors said. The day after the siege, Daryl wrote on Facebook that Jan. 6 “will be the beginning of the revolution” and that if others similar to him decided to oust elected officials “[i]t will be hangings on the front lawn of the capitol,” according to the court document. Meanwhile, prosecutors said Daniel told a third party via Snapchat on Jan. 6 that “I was one of the first ones inside.” The pair were separately arrested on June 11 and are to be sentenced April 12 when they each face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Prosecutors last year also charged father and son duo Hunter and Kevin Seefried on charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. The Justice Department said late last week that more than 725 people have been arrested nationwide for their involvement in the attack, including 75 for using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer. Some 165 have pleaded guilty, 145 to misdemeanor charges, and 20 to felonies. Reporting by Darryl Coote