By Jan Wolfe
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A member of the far-right Proud Boys group on Wednesday pleaded guilty to obstructing police officers when he joined the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by President Donald Trump’s supporters in their attempt to overturn his election defeat.
The plea agreement filed in federal court in Washington calls for Louis Enrique Colon of Missouri to admit to a single felony charge and cooperate with prosecutors. Colon admitted to crossing police barricades during the riot before climbing a wall to gain access to a higher level of the Capitol.
While inside the Capitol building, Colon used his hands and a chair to obstruct police officers who were trying to lower retractable doors to stop rioters from streaming into the building.
Colon, 45, was charged in February 2021 along with four other members of the Kansas City metro chapter of the Proud Boys. He is the first defendant in that case to plead guilty.
A judge had imposed monitoring conditions on Colon while he awaited trial. Colon will be sentenced later this year, and he faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
He will likely receive a reduced sentence because of his admission of responsibility and cooperation.
Colon was not charged in the same conspiracy case as Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman and one of the most high-profile of the 800 people facing criminal charges relating to the riot.
Colon’s plea comes two weeks after a Proud Boys leader, Charles Donohoe, pleaded guilty to obstructing an official proceeding, and assaulting and impeding police officers.
(Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Editing by Scott Malone and Jonathan Oatis)
