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Berkshire County resident Troy Sargent, age 38, of Pittsfield, pleaded guilty on Monday, June 27 in the District of Columbia to six counts of an indictment, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers and civil disorder.
According to court documents, Sargent was part of a crowd of rioters illegally on the Capitol grounds on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021.
At approximately 2:30 p.m., he stepped forward from the crowd and swung his open hand towards a US Capitol police officer, making contact with the officer, said the US Attorney Matthew M. Graves for the District Of Columbia.
Immediately afterward, another officer instructed Sargent and others, “Do not start attacking people.” Thirty seconds later, at approximately 2:31 p.m., Sargent again advanced toward the front of the crowd and swung his open hand towards the same officer; this time, he made contact with someone else in the crowd, court documents show.
In the second incident, Sargent intended to make contact with the same officer. In a social media message later, he wrote to another person, “I got two hits in on the same rookie cop …”
Sargent was arrested on Tuesday, March 9, 2021, in Pittsfield. He is to be sentenced in October and faces a statutory maximum of eight years in prison on the charge of assaulting officers and up to five years in prison on the civil disorder charge, the US Attorney's Office said.
He also faces a total of three-and-half years in prison on the four misdemeanors charges.
In the 17 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 840 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 250 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
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