California Four Sentenced for Jan 6 Capitol Breach Conspiracy

Four men from California have been sentenced to prison for their roles in the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. Erik Scott Warner, 48, of Menifee, California, was sentenced to 27 months in prison, while Felipe Antonio Martinez, 50, of Lake Elsinore, California, received 21 months. Derek Kinnison, 42, of Lake Elsinore, California, was sentenced to 33 months, and Ronald Mele, 54, of Temecula, California, also received 33 months.

The men, all members of a Three Percenter militia in Southern California, were found guilty of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of an official proceeding, both felony offenses. They were also convicted of tampering with documents or records, a felony, as well as misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.

According to the evidence at trial, the men coordinated and conspired together to arrange travel from California to Washington, D.C., to collect weapons, and to obstruct Congress’ certification of the Electoral College. They used a Telegram chat entitled “The California Patriots – DC Brigade” to coordinate logistics and to discuss their intentions for January 6.

On January 6, the group went to the Ellipse for the “Stop the Steal” rally and afterward headed toward the Capitol. As the four men approached the Capitol at approximately 2:00 p.m., Kinnison announced, “This is the storm of the Capitol,” as they moved through the crowd. By approximately 2:10 p.m., Warner had joined rioters ascending the northwest stairs to the Upper West Terrace, at a location police had been defending moments earlier.

At the same time, Martinez, Kinnison, and Mele advanced against a police line on the northwest lawn. Mele called out for the crowd to “Push! Push! Push!” as the officers on the lawn were surrounded, assaulted, and forced to retreat. Warner broke into the Capitol building through a smashed window at approximately 2:13 p.m. When Martinez, Kinnison, and Mele heard by phone that Warner had broken into the Capitol, Martinez called out, “We have to get up there!”

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth ordered each defendant to pay $2,000 restitution and complete 36 months of supervised release. The FBI arrested the men on June 10, 2021. This 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.

RELATED: Repeat Offenders Get Prison Time

RELATED: Vallejo Man Gets 24 Years for Child Sex Exploitation