The US Justice sentenced this Thursday Stewart Rhodes, founder and leader of the far-right militia Oath Keepers, to 18 years in prison for conspiracy that culminated in the invasion of the US Capitol, in 2021, to try to prevent the electoral victory of President Joe Biden.
Stewart Rhodes is the first person charged with the January 6, 2021 invasion to be found guilty of seditious conspiracy, and his sentence is the longest handed down so far in the hundreds of cases related to the Capitol riots, which sought to maintain the Capitol in power. Former Republican President Donald Trump.
Before passing sentence, the judge told Rhodes that he is a threat to the US, saying it was clear that the activist “wants democracy in this country to turn into violence.”
“The moment he is released, when he is, I know that he will again be ready to take up arms against his government,” District Judge Amit Mehta said.
This was one of the most iconic cases carried out by the US Department of Justice, which tried to show that the riot by right-wing extremists like the Oath Keepers was not a one-off protest, but the culmination of weeks of conspiracy. to annul the elections. Biden win.
Prosecutors have called for 25 years in jail for Rhodes, who they say masterminded a conspiracy to forcibly stop the transfer of presidential power, which included “quick reaction force” teams to transport weapons to the capital if necessary. .
In comments shortly before the judge handed down the sentence, Rhodes criticized the prosecution as politically motivated, saying he never entered the Capitol and insisting he never told anyone to do so.
“I am a political prisoner and, like President Trump, my only crime is to oppose those who are destroying our country,” Rhodes said.
Prosecutors argued that a harsh sentence would be needed to stop further political violence.
A lawyer for Rhodes – who has already announced that he will appeal the sentence – said that prosecutors are unfairly trying to make Rhodes the face of the events that occurred at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, where a demonstration turned into an invasion in which five people died. , including a policeman.
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 blow to the Oath Keepers, which Rhodes founded in 2009 and which has become one of the largest far-right anti-government militia groups.
Source: TSF
