By Trish Svoboda

An Olathe, Kansas man has been sentenced to 55 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release for his involvement in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

William Chrestman, a second-degree member of the Proud Boys, pleaded guilty to obstruction of an official proceeding and threatening a federal officer. Court documents reveal his active participation in breaching the Capitol, including encouraging other rioters, obstructing barriers, and preventing an arrest.

On January 6, 2021, Chrestman went to Washington, D.C. with a group, joining other Proud Boys near the Washington Monument. Around 1:00 p.m., the crowd breached barriers toward the Capitol. At the Capitol Visitor Center, Chrestman got into an altercation with an officer while attempting to prevent another rioter from being arrested.

The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, aided by the Justice Department’s National Security Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Kansas. The FBI’s Washington and Kansas City Field Offices, along with support from the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department, conducted the investigation.

Over the past 36 months since the incident, charges have been filed against over 1,265 individuals in nearly all 50 states for crimes linked to the breach of the U.S. Capitol. Among them, more than 440 individuals face charges of assaulting or impeding law enforcement, which is a felony. The investigation is ongoing.