Iowa man seen chasing Capitol Police officer on Jan. 6 sentenced to five years

An Iowa man who received national attention over video showing him leading a group of people chasing U.S. Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman in the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was sentenced to five years in prison on Friday.

Doug Jensen, a 43-year-old man from Des Moines, Iowa, was found guilty in September of assaulting, resisting or impeding a law enforcement officer, obstruction of an official proceeding, interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder, entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a dangerous weapon, and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a dangerous weapon. 

He has been sentenced to 60 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his actions, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. 

Prosecutors said Jensen entered the Capitol illegally at 2 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021, wearing a black shirt with a “Q” on the chest, a reference to the QAnon conspiracy theory. He scaled a wall on the West Front of the Capitol and was the 10th person to enter the building. 

He carried a knife with a three-inch blade in his pocket.

Jensen encountered Goodman and ignored his repeated orders to back away and leave the building. He led other rioters in a “menacing pursuit” of Goodman up the East Grand Staircase near the Senate Chamber in the Capitol. He demanded that officers back away, give up the building and arrest Vice President Mike Pence. 

Goodman received widespread acclaim for his actions during the Capitol riot after he led those invading the building in a direction away from lawmakers.

Jensen was escorted out of the building after about 40 minutes inside but then returned, shoving Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department officers who were clearing rioters. 

Jensen was arrested two days after the riot. 

He was ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution in addition to serving his sentence.