A Missouri man, a member of the Proud Boys, pleaded guilty today to a felony charge for obstructing law enforcement officers during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His and others’ actions disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.
Louis Enrique Colon, 45, of Blue Springs, Missouri, pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to civil disorder. Colon was a member of the Proud Boys, which describes itself as a “pro-Western fraternal organization for men who refuse to apologize for creating the modern world, aka Western Chauvinists.” Beginning in or around December 2020, he and other Proud Boys members, and others, began discussing plans to travel to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6.
He and others drove from Kansas City to the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Colon brought a handgun with him on the trip but did not bring it into Washington. On Jan. 5, he and two others went to a hardware store to purchase items to use on Jan. 6. Colon purchased and modified an axe handle to be used as both a walking stick and a weapon.
On Jan. 6, Colon and others met with a large group of Proud Boys at the Washington Monument. They then marched to the Capitol, making their way to the west side of the grounds. At the time, Colon was carrying a pocketknife and wearing a backpack, tactical vest, tactical gloves, boots, and a helmet adorned with orange tape. Colon and others proceeded past the police barricades and onto the Capitol’s West Plaza. He climbed a wall to gain access to a higher level of the Capitol’s exterior and unlawfully entered the building at approximately 2 p.m. While inside the Capitol, Colon obstructed police officers who were attempting to lower retractable doors to stop rioters from proceeding further into a portion of the building. Colon used his hands to stop one door and placed a chair in its path. He remained in the Capitol building until about 2:50 p.m.
Colon was arrested on Feb. 11, 2021, in Kansas City. No sentencing date was set. He faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the District of Kansas and the Western District of Missouri.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington and Kansas City Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.
Read more at the Justice Department
