WASHINGTON — A father and son who bragged they were among the first to enter the U.S. Capitol Building on January 6 will face up to 5 years in prison after pleading guilty Tuesday to one felony count each.
Daryl Johnson, of St. Angsar, Iowa, and his son, 29-year-old Daniel Johnson, of Austin, Minnesota, appeared before U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich this week to enter pleas of guilty to civil disorder.
According to a probable cause affidavit filed in federal court, the Johnsons were identified by multiple tipsters, including a St. Angsar police officer who knew the senior Johnson because his father had previously been the town’s mayor.
A subsequent investigation by the FBI allegedly turned up videos of the Johnsons rushing the police line inside the riot as part of the crowd that opened the rotunda doors. Investigators also found multiple posts on their social media accounts in which they claimed to have been in attendance.
In one post on Facebook, the FBI says, the younger Johnson wrote that, “I was one of the first ones inside the capitol building.”
In multiple posts on his page, obtained via a search warrant, Daryl Johnson reportedly claimed damage to the Capitol on January 6 was actually caused by “Antifa.”
“What the media is saying is completely false. It was Antifa causing the damage. I was there!” Daniel Johnson reportedly wrote. “Trump supporters were restraining the Antifa people.”
On Tuesday, the Johnsons said in federal court that they were actually the ones committing civil disorder inside the Capitol. The charge carries a maximum sentence of up to 5 years in prison and a maximum fine of up to $20,000.
The Johnsons aren’t the first father-son pair arrested in connection to the case. Two Delaware men – Kevin Seefried and his son Hunter Seefried – were indicted in April on charges of entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. A photograph of Kevin Seefried carrying a large Confederate battle flag through the U.S. Capitol building became one of the most recognizable images of the Capitol riot.
A sentencing was scheduled for the Johnsons in front of Friedrich on April 12.
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