In a new filing released on Friday, federal prosecutors are seeking a 10-year prison sentence for Federico "Freddie" Guillermo Klein, a former State Department official in the Trump administration who joined the mob at the Capitol on January 6.
The move was first flagged by Politico legal affairs correspondent Kyle Cheney.
"While there, he shoved police officers who were trying to control the crowd and protect the building, including U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harvell," said the filing. "During that assault, Klein called out, 'You can't stop this!' He also called to rioters behind him for help in pushing against the police." Klein later forced his way into the Lower West Terrace Tunnel, where for 90 minutes he pushed against officers with stolen riot shields and used one of them to wedge the doors open.
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As the prosecutors noted, Klein "strongly believed" the 2020 presidential election was "stolen" from former President Donald Trump, and despite knowing all of the legal avenues to challenge the election, pursued conspiracy theories about former Vice President Mike Pence denying the electoral count during certification, a plot for which Trump himself has now been indicted on federal charges.
Klein at one point held a top secret security clearance, and did work for the far-right Family Research Council, considered to be a hate group by some experts.
During his trial, Klein complained to a judge that there shouldn't be so much footage of the January 6 attack being circulated publicly, because it made him look bad. Ultimately, he was found guilty by bench trial of eight felonies and four misdemeanors, including assault, civil disorder, and obstruction of an official proceeding.
