WASHINGTON (AP) — Man targeted by right-wing conspiracy theories US Capitol riot He was sentenced to one year of probation on Tuesday for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by a mob of Donald Trump supporters.
Ray Eppsa former Arizona resident who went into hiding due to death threats. plead guilty In September misdemeanor. He received no jail time and no travel restrictions while on probation, but he will be required to complete 100 hours of community service. He appeared remotely via video conference and was not in the Washington, D.C., courtroom when Chief Judge James Boasberg handed down the sentence.
When Ray Epps encouraged people to break into the Capitol, he knew it was a crime because he had an outstanding warrant for criminal trespass in Pennsylvania from 2015.
He wasn't the only one removed from the FBI's suspect list – so what really happened with J6? pic.twitter.com/oIbaklzqh5
— Truth in Media (@Truth_InMedia) November 20, 2023
Epps' sentencing took place in the same building where Trump was present. Court of Appeal hearing As the former president's lawyers argued, he immunity from prosecution he is guilty of designed to reverse the results He lost the 2020 election.
Fox News Channel and other right-wing media outlets have amplified conspiracy theories that Epps, 62, was a secret government operative who incited the storming of the Capitol to trap Trump supporters.Epps filed a lawsuit for defamation He told Fox News last year: It was because of the network for spreading unsubstantiated claims about him.
Episode 61 This is the smartest, most informed account of what really happened on January 6th. pic.twitter.com/U9yCWRVJSd
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) January 6, 2024
Federal prosecutors upheld Mr. Epps' vehement denials that he was a government plant or FBI operative. They said Mr. Epps had never been a civil servant or government employee, other than serving in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1979 to 1983.
Epps' attorney said the ordeal forced him and his wife to sell their property and business and flee their home in Queen Creek, Arizona.
“He doesn't play golf, play tennis, travel, or do any other retirement fun. They live in a mobile home in the woods, away from family, friends, and community,” said attorney Edward Ungvarski. said in a court filing.
The internet accusations that changed Epps' life forever continue after the Justice Department indicted him for participating in the January 6 siege.
“Until those spreading hatred and lies about Mr. Epps speak out loudly and publicly to correct the message they've conveyed, there is no end in sight to the fear of deranged extremists,” Ungvarski said. Stated. written in court filings.
Epps plead guilty Disorderly conduct on restricted grounds is punishable by up to one year in prison.
prosecutor Recommends 6 months imprisonment Epps has worked as a roofer, handyman, farmer and venue operator. His lawyer asked for a six-month suspended sentence with no jail time.
Ungwarski said his client traveled to Washington on Jan. 6 to peacefully protest the certification of electoral votes for Democrat Joe Biden over Republican Trump.
Prosecutors say Epps encouraged rioters to storm the Capitol, helped other rioters push large metal-framed signs at a group of officers, and staged a “rugby scrum” that pushed a line of officers aside. He is said to have participated in “group actions such as this.”
“Even if Epps did not physically touch law enforcement officers or enter the building, he certainly engaged in an act of collective aggression,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gordon. written in court filings.
Two days after the riot, Epps turned himself in to the FBI after learning that investigators were trying to determine his identity. He agreed to be interviewed by FBI agents as well as the House committee that investigated the January 6 riot.
The government initially declined to prosecute Epps in 2021 after the FBI investigated his conduct on January 6 and found insufficient evidence to charge him with a crime, Ungwarski said. . Epps is not suspected of breaking into the Capitol on January 6 or of engaging in any violence or vandalism.
“Mr. Epps was one of many who trespassed outside the Capitol. In the exercise of prosecutorial discretion, most of these people will never be charged,” the defense attorney wrote.
More than 1,200 defendants They are charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol riot. More than 900 of them either pleaded guilty or were convicted after trials decided by a judge or jury. Approximately 750 rioters have been sentenced, with nearly two-thirds receiving some form of prison sentence.
Epps, a former leader of the Oath Keepers' Arizona chapter, fell out with the anti-government extremist group several years before the January 6 attack.
Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and other members convicted of seditious conspiracy He is accused of plotting to prevent the peaceful transfer of presidential power from Trump to Biden after the 2020 election.Mr. Rose was sentenced last year. Up to 18 years in prison.
Fox News did not respond to a message from The Associated Press seeking comment on Epps' lawsuit.
