Seattle Man Sentenced For Role In Jan. 6 Capitol Breach

Seattle WA

21 December, 2021

3:48 PM

Description

SEATTLE — A Seattle man will serve nearly four years in federal prison for participating in the breach of the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection, according to U.S. Attorney's Office. Prosecutors alleged that Devlyn Thompson, 28, was part of a crowd that pushed against and assaulted members of the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Capitol Police inside a tunnel that led into the Capitol. Prosecutors said Thompson was specifically part of a group that threw objects, including flag poles, at officers inside the tunnel and stole riot shields. He pleaded guilty to charges of assaulting, resisting, and impeding officers with a dangerous weapon on Aug. 6. The U.S. Attorney's Office writes: "At approximately 2:21 p.m., Thompson personally observed police order rioters to stop, physically push the crowd back, and deploy pepper spray in an effort to try to stop the ongoing assault. Later, Thompson entered a tunnel on the West Front Terrace that led to an entrance to the U.S. Capitol, where members of Congress were sheltering in place. Thompson joined rioters in that tunnel and assisted other rioters in their assault of officers by helping them seize and use stolen law enforcement shields for approximately 13 minutes. Thompson also helped throw a large speaker at the front line of officers, and he later picked up a metal baton from the floor of the tunnel and swung it overhead and downward against the police line in an apparent effort to knock a can of pepper spray from an officer's hand and stop the officer from pepper-spraying the rioters. After more pepper spray was deployed by the rioters and the officers, Thompson retreated from the archway area." U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia and the U.S. Justice Department's National Security Division led prosecution for Thompson's case, with assistance from the Western District of Washington in Seattle. In addition to the 46 months in prison, the judge ordered Thompson to pay $2,000 in restitution, followed by three years of supervised release According to the Department of Justice, more than 700 people have been arrested across the nation stemming from the events on Jan. 6, and more than 200 were charged with assaulting or impeding members of law enforcement.