A Florida man was sentenced on Wednesday to five years in prison for assaulting at least six police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol, including one officer who said that the attack had led him to retire early, the Justice Department announced.
Prosecutors described the man, Kenneth Bonawitz, 58, of Pompano Beach, Fla., in court papers as “one of the most violent January 6 rioters.” He was also sentenced to 36 months of supervised release following his time in prison and fined $2,000 by Judge Jia M. Cobb of U.S. District Court in Washington, prosecutors said.
Mr. Bonawitz, who was arrested in January 2023, pleaded guilty in August to three felony charges: civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding and assaulting a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors asked the judge in a memorandum to sentence Mr. Bonawitz to the maximum prison sentence of 71 months, just shy of six years.
In the memo, they included victim impact statements from two of the officers who were assaulted.
Persons:
Kenneth Bonawitz, Judge Jia M, Cobb, Bonawitz
Organizations:
Justice Department, Prosecutors
Locations:
Florida, Pompano Beach, Fla, U.S, Washington