{"id":49709,"date":"2022-05-04T18:30:31","date_gmt":"2022-05-05T01:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=49709"},"modified":"2022-05-04T18:30:31","modified_gmt":"2022-05-05T01:30:31","slug":"leader-of-oath-keepers-guilty-of-sedition-and-obstruction-of-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=49709","title":{"rendered":"Leader of Oath Keepers Guilty of Sedition and Obstruction of Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"A regional leader of the Oath Keepers pleaded guilty Wednesday to seditious conspiracy and obstruction of Congress after a breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

His and others\u2019 actions sought to stop the transfer of power by disrupting a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.<\/span><\/p>\n

William Todd Wilson, 45, of Newton Grove, North Carolina, plead guilty to seditious conspiracy in connection with the Capitol breach. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

As part of the plea agreement, Wilson has agreed to cooperate with the government\u2019s ongoing investigation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson is the third Oath Keepers member to plead guilty to seditious conspiracy and obstruction charges. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"buildingJoshua James, 34, of Arab, Alabama, plead guilty on March 2, 2022. Brian Ulrich, 44, of Guyton, Georgia, plead guilty on April 29, 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n

As described in court documents, Wilson was an Oath Keeper member since 2016. He was a leader of a chapter from Sampson County, North Carolina. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Oath Keepers are a large but loosely organized collection of individuals, some of whom are associated with militias. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"closeupThough the Oath Keepers will accept anyone as members, they explicitly focus on recruiting current and former military, law enforcement and first-responder personnel.<\/span><\/p>\n

In his guilty plea, Wilson, a military and law enforcement veteran, admitted that he agreed with others to take part in a plan to use force to prevent the execution of the laws of the United States governing the transfer of presidential power. <\/span><\/p>\n

He and others used encrypted and private communications, equipped themselves with a variety of weapons, donned combat and tactical gear and were prepared to answer a call to take up arms.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to court documents, Wilson and other conspirators engaged in numerous communications in the weeks leading to Jan. 6, often using an encrypted messaging application called \u201cSignal.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

In one post, on Dec. 14, 2020, Wilson wrote, \u201cIt is time to fight!\u201d In another, on Dec. 30, 2020, he posted, \u201cThings are about to get real . . . and we need to be ready as ever!\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

On Jan. 5, 2021, in response to a message anticipating unrest after the next day\u2019s Congressional proceeding, Wilson replied, \u201cThat\u2019s why I have all my gear with me.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On Jan. 5, Wilson drove to the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. He brought an AR-15-style rifle, a 9-millimeter pistol, approximately 200 rounds of ammunition, body armor, a camouflaged combat uniform, pepper spray, a large walking stick intended for use as a weapon, and a pocketknife.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

He stayed at a Virginia hotel with other Oath Keepers leaders. <\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson stored his firearms, ammunition and combat gear in the hotel room and was prepared to retrieve the weapons if called upon to do so.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the afternoon of Jan. 6, Wilson and others marched to the Capitol. Shortly after 2 p.m., he and others in the group bypassed barricades and Capitol Police officers and unlawfully entered the restricted grounds. <\/span><\/p>\n

At 2:34 p.m., Wilson entered the Capitol through the Upper West Terrace Doors. He was the first of the Oath Keepers co-conspirators to breach the building. <\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson was armed with a pocketknife and wore a neck gaiter and beanie hat to mask his appearance. <\/span><\/p>\n

By 2:38 p.m., he had marched through the Rotunda to the east side of the Capitol, where he joined in the center of a mob of people trying to push open the Rotunda Doors from inside the building. <\/span><\/p>\n

About one minute later, the Rotunda Doors were forced open, and a mob of people, including more Oath Keepers, moved inside.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson exited the Capitol at 2:55 p.m. He later met with other co-conspirators at a restaurant in Vienna, Virginia, where one member advised that incriminating materials should be deleted from their cell phones. <\/span><\/p>\n

On Jan. 7, after arriving at his home, Wilson took steps to conceal incriminating evidence of his participation in the conspiracy from being stored in his Apple iCloud account. <\/span><\/p>\n

In late January 2021, he intentionally discarded his only cell phone into the Atlantic Ocean to prevent law enforcement from discovering incriminating evidence about his participation in this conspiracy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson was charged in criminal information that was filed today. <\/span><\/p>\n

Nine other members of the Oath Keepers, including Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, 57, the founder and leader, also are charged with seditious conspiracy in an indictment returned Jan. 12, 2022; they have pleaded not guilty.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wilson faces up to 20 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and up to 20 years for obstruction of an official proceeding, along with potential financial penalties. <\/span><\/p>\n

No sentencing date was set.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A regional leader of the Oath Keepers pleaded guilty Wednesday to seditious conspiracy and obstruction of Congress after a breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, officials stated. 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