A Florida man was sentenced today on a felony and six misdemeanor charges related to his conduct during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Anthony Sargent, 47, of St. Augustine, Fla., was sentenced to 60 months in prison for the felony count of civil disorder and misdemeanor charges that included the destruction of property; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings.
Sargent pleaded guilty, on July 21, 2023, in the District of Columbia. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ordered 36 months of supervised release, and restitution of $2,980.
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According to court documents, during the January 6 attack on the Capitol, Sargent grabbed and pushed a police officer to prevent him from detaining another rioter; twice shoved two officers away from the Capitol as they tried to retreat to safety; twice threw a heavy object at a set of doors leading into the Capitol with the intent to break the doors’ glass panels, while officers stood behind those doors; and encouraged other rioters to damage the same set of doors.
Sargent’s violence was not spontaneous—as a member of the Proud Boys, he vocalized his support for a riot and civil war on the group’s messaging platform in the days leading up to January 6.
Several open-source videos depict Sargent attempting to breach the north entrance to the Capitol building. In one of the videos, court documents state that Sargent is seen pushing with the mob against officers guarding the building.
After the officers retreated into the Capitol, Sargent and other rioters pursued them. Sargent and the rioters, however, were stopped by a set of doors locked by the officers.
Shortly thereafter, Sargent picked up a heavy rock-like object approximately the size of a softball and twice hurled it at the inner set of doors. When Sargent threw the object, police officers stood directly behind the doors.
Later that day, in the same area, a police officer entered the crowd to attempt to detain a rioter who assaulted another officer. As the officer moved towards the rioter, Sargent physically separated the officer from the rioter and prevented the officer from apprehending the rioter. Sargent then grabbed and pushed that officer away from his post at the North Door and into the mob of rioters.
Sargent was arrested on Sept. 21, 2021, in St. Augustine.
This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
In the 35 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,230 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 440 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.
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