MAGA rioter who bragged about making lawmakers run from angry mob faces up to 5 years in jail after guilty plea
A Florida man who helped the mob surge through doors of the U.S. Capitol -- and boasted about it on video afterward -- has plead guilty to a felony charge in connection with the January 6 insurrection.
Andrew William Griswold, 33, of Niceville, Florida, pleaded guilty today in the District of Columbia to civil disorder, a charge carrying up to five years in prison and fines up to $250,000. He is scheduled to be sentenced July 13.
Griswold was initially tipped off to the FBI by a woman who said she grew up with Griswold and recognized him from NBC News coverage, the FBI criminal complaint stated. He was also identified by the FBI in video footage taken by another individual who had entered the Capitol.
Here’s how the complaint described Griswold’s participation:
“(Videos) show a crowd inside the Capitol pushing aside police to open a door to the outside. Once the crowd succeeds in opening the door, more intruders enter the Capitol from the outside, including Griswold. After Griswold enters the building, he climbs up on a bench and holds up a cell phone, appearing to be taking a photo or video of himself. He then points toward a staircase, walks toward it, and begins to climb the steps. In the next video (from the Capitol’s Gallery stairs, at about 2:40 p.m.), Griswold walks up the stairs, hugs another individual making a video of the event, and repeatedly raises his fists in the air. Finally, in the fourth video, Griswold appears to run down a hallway in the Capitol.”
Griswold also appeared in videos -- dressed in camouflage -- addressing “a crowd of people, some of whom are wearing Trump hats and waving flags,” the report stated. Here’s what he had to say:
“We took the building. They couldn’t stop us. And now they know we can do it again and we will f*cking do it again. This is America and we love this country and they are not going to f*cking take it again. Pelosi, Schumer, all you mofos, back off, this is our country, we are willing to do whatever it takes to keep it. Don’t mess with us. Back off. This is our country. We showed ‘em today. We took it. They ran. And hid.”
You can read the FBI criminal complaint here.