More than 200 Capitol rioters have pleaded guilty 14 months after attack, DOJ says

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Thursday that more than 200 people charged in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol have pleaded guilty to various counts as of March 6, 2022, which marked 14 months since the deadly attack.

Roughly 224 individuals have pleaded guilty to an array of federal charges since the attack on the Capitol, according to a press release from the DOJ, which included a number of statistics in an update on the investigation into the deadly attack.

That number of guilty pleas is up from about 165 that had been made as of Dec. 30, 2021, when the DOJ released information regarding the progress of the investigation roughly one year after the attack.

About 195 individuals have pleaded guilty to misdemeanors and 29 have admitted to felonies as of March 6, 2022, according to the department. Seven of the guilty pleas to felonies were for charges relating to assaults on law enforcement.

Six of those who pleaded guilty have been sentenced to prison for terms spanning from 41 months to 63 months.

The DOJ said that 14 months after the attack, the investigation into the deadly riot is moving at “an unprecedented speed and scale.”

“Under the continued leadership of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the attack continues to move forward at an unprecedented speed and scale,” the department wrote.

“The Department of Justice’s resolve to hold accountable those who committed crimes on Jan. 6, 2021, has not, and will not, wane,” the department added.

More than 245 individuals have been charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers or employees 14 months after the attack, according to the DOJ, which is up from 225 in December.

Upwards of 775 defendants have been arrested in almost all 50 states and Washington, D.C., according to the department, which marks an increase of 50 arrests from roughly one year after the riot.

This update comes after the first Capitol rioter to take his case to trial was found guilty on Tuesday.

A jury found Guy Reffitt guilty on all five counts against him, obstruction of an official proceeding, remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a firearm, obstruction of justice and two counts of civil disorder.

The DOJ on Thursday, however, said the FBI is still working to identify more than 350 Capitol riot suspects who are believed to have taken part in violent activities on Jan. 6, 2021. That number remained unchanged from the department’s December report.

The Justice Department said the FBI is asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspects.

“Citizens from around the country have provided invaluable assistance in identifying individuals in connection with the Jan. 6 attack,” the department wrote in the update. “The FBI continues to seek the public’s help in identifying more than 350 individuals believed to have committed violent acts on the Capitol grounds, including over 250 who assaulted police officers.”