36°
Jonathan Munafo, age 36, of Albany, was sentenced to 33 months behind bars in US District Court in Washington, DC on Friday, Sept. 22.
“His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the US Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election,” reads a statement from the US Attorney’s Office.
According to prosecutors, Munafo joined a mob of rioters who illegally entered the Capitol grounds and made their way to the Lower West Terrace Tunnel, pushing their way inside.
Donning a gas mask, he then exited the tunnel and made his way to the front line of the rioters. Video shows him making several attempts to scale the wall of the Capitol building and striking a window more than a dozen times.
“Munafo often looked back at the crowd, shouting, chanting, and attempting to rile up the other rioters,” prosecutors said.
A short time later, video captured Munafo punching a Metropolitan Police Department officer twice while attempting to rip the officer’s riot shield away. The second punch caused the officer’s head to snap back.
He ultimately managed to take the officer’s riot shield before disappearing back into the crowd, leaving the officer vulnerable to further attacks.
Munafo was arrested months later, on April 26, 2021, in Orlando, Florida. He pleaded guilty to two felony counts of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and civil disorder.
In addition to his time behind bars, he must complete 36 months of supervised release and pay $2,000 in restitution.
In the 32 months since the Capitol riots, more than 1,100 people have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach, including over 350 people charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.
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