The founder of the radical group Oath Keepers, Stuart Rhodes, was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday for the conspiracy that culminated in the 2021 invasion of the US Capitol to prevent President Joe Biden’s election victory.
Stewart Rhodes is the first person charged with the January 6, 2021 invasion to be convicted of seditious conspiracy, and his sentence is the longest to date in the hundreds of cases related to the U.S. Capitol riot, which tried to keep the Capitol in power by former Republican President Donald Trump.
Before handing down his sentence, the judge told Rhodes that he is a threat to the US, claiming it was clear that this activist “wants democracy in this country to turn to violence”.
“The moment he is released, when he is released, I know he will be ready to take up arms against his government again”said District Judge Amit Mehta.
This was one of the most emblematic cases carried out by the US Department of Justice, which sought to prove that the riots of right-wing extremists like the Oath Keepers were not an occasional protest, but rather the culmination of weeks of plotting to overturn the election. Biden victory.
Prosecutors have demanded 25 years in prison for Rhodes, who they say was the architect of a conspiracy to forcibly stop the transfer of presidential power, including “rapid reaction force” teams to transport weapons to the capital if necessary .
In remarks shortly before the judge delivered the verdict, Rhodes criticized the prosecution as politically motivated, said he never entered the Capitol and insisted he never told anyone to do so.
“I am a political prisoner and, like President Trump, my only crime is to stand against those who are destroying our country”defended Rhodes.
Prosecutors argued that a severe sentence would be necessary to stop further political violence.
A lawyer for Rhodes – who has already announced an appeal against the verdict – said prosecutors are dishonestly trying to make Rhodes the face of events at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, where a demonstration grew into an invasion that left five people dead. including a police officer.
Two other members of the Oath Keepers group – acquitted of sedition charges but convicted of other crimes – will hear their sentences on Friday, and four other members found guilty of seditious conspiracy in a second trial in January will be sentenced next week.
The convictions are a major blow to the Oath Keepers, which Rhodes founded in 2009 and has become one of the leading far-right anti-government militias.
Source: DN
