- 4 California males with hyperlinks to the “Three Percenters” militia group have been convicted of fees stemming from their roles within the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot.
- The boys, Erik Warner, 48, Felipe Martinez, 50, Derek Kinnison, 42, and Ronald Mele, 54, had been discovered responsible of varied fees.
- Warner, Martinez, Kinnison and Mele communicated plans to storm the Capitol in a Telegram chat known as “The California Patriots – DC Brigade,” which they joined alongside two different defendants.
4 California males linked to the “Three Percenters” militia motion have been convicted of fees together with conspiracy and obstruction for his or her roles within the Jan. 6, 2021 riot on the U.S. Capitol.
Erik Scott Warner, 48, of Menifee,; Felipe Antonio Martinez, 50, of Lake Elsinore,; Derek Kinnison, 42, of Lake Elsinore,; and Ronald Mele, 54, of Temecula, had been discovered responsible on Tuesday after a trial in Washington’s federal court docket, in accordance with prosecutors.
They had been convicted of conspiracy and obstruction of an official continuing — the joint session of Congress during which lawmakers met to certify President Joe Biden because the winner of the 2020 election.
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Attorneys for Martinez and Warner declined to remark, and emails searching for remark had been despatched to an legal professional for Mele.
Kinnison’s lawyer, Nicolai Cocis, mentioned he’s disillusioned with the decision and they’re contemplating all obtainable authorized choices.
“Mr. Kinnison is a patriotic citizen who needed to indicate his help for President Trump, who he believed was the rightful winner of the 2020 election. He regrets his involvement within the occasions of January 6,” Cocis mentioned in an electronic mail.
On this Jan. 6, 2021 file picture, violent protesters, loyal to President Donald Trump, storm the Capitol in Washington. (AP Picture/John Minchillo)
Prosecutors say the boys had been a part of a Three Percenters militia in southern California. The Three Percenters militia motion refers back to the fable that solely 3% of Individuals fought within the Revolutionary Conflict in opposition to the British.
They had been charged in 2021 alongside Alan Hostetter, a former California police chief, right-wing activist and vocal critic of COVID-19 restrictions, who was convicted in July in a separate trial. One other one in every of their codefendants, Russell Taylor, pleaded responsible in April to a conspiracy cost.
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The 4 males joined a telegram chat with Hostetter and Taylor known as “The California Patriots – DC Brigade” to coordinate plans for coming to Washington. Taylor posted that he created the group for “fighters” who had been anticipated to convey “weaponry” and physique armor with them to Washington on Jan. 6, in accordance with prosecutors.
Warner, Martinez, Kinnison and Mele drove cross nation collectively days earlier than the riot. On Jan. 6, Warner entered the Capitol by a damaged window. In the meantime, Martinez, carrying a tactical vest, and Kinnison, who was carrying a gasoline masks, joined rioters on the Capitol’s Higher West Terrace, in accordance with the indictment. Mele, who was additionally carrying a tactical vest, proclaimed “Storm the Capitol!” in a “selfie” model video on the steps of the constructing, prosecutors say.
Warner and Kinnison, who had been accused of deleting the “DC Brigade” chat from their telephones after the riot, had been additionally convicted of tampering with paperwork or proceedings.
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Almost 1,200 folks have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. Over 800 of them have pleaded responsible or been convicted by a jury or choose after a trial. Roughly 700 of them have been sentenced, with roughly two-thirds receiving phrases of imprisonment starting from three days to 22 years.
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