A Utah man received a hefty sentence for his role in the January 6 Capitol riots, touching off a 72-month stint in prison for felony obstruction among other charges. John Earle Sullivan, 29, from Salt Lake City, was slapped with this sentence after being convicted for his disruptive conduct when protesters breached the halls of Congress, interrupting the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

According to an announcement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, Sullivan faced justice at the hands of the U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth. His sentence encompasses a three-year supervised release, and he's ordered to pay up to $2,000 in restitution. The road to sentencing followed a guilty verdict handed down by a federal jury that tagged Sullivan with multiple felonies, including dangerous weapon possession and encouraging rioters as he recorded the mayhem.

The court detailed Sullivan’s calculated approach leading up to the siege, painting a picture of a man who oscillated between the image of an activist and sowing seeds of upheaval. He used social media to fan the flames of what he described as "pure chaos," earning a notorious online presence. He utilized Instagram and X to urge his followers to join what he referred to as "tonight's purge" and "time to burn it all down," as revealed in court documents.

On January 6, clad in a ballistic vest and gas mask, Sullivan threw himself amongst the mob and stormed the Capitol. His voice, blasted through a bullhorn, egged on the crowd with cries like "Get in that s—, let’s go! Move, Move, Move! Storm that s—!". Upon encountering the police, Sullivan pressed on, caught on video making brazen statements such as "We gotta get this s— burned," "It's our house m—f—," despite commands from law enforcement to evacuate the premises, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office announcement.

Sullivan’s aggressive posture peaked as he held up a knife to the crowd at the House of Representatives' doors, pointing to a Smith & Wesson with a 3.74" blade, later confirmed by the FBI. He was part of the group that shattered the windows of the Speaker’s Lobby, steps away from where a woman was fatally shot amidst the chaos. The escalation and his part in it led to an arrest on January 14, 2021, in his home city.

This case adds to a significant tally of legal repercussions from that day, with over 1,385 individuals charged across the nation for crimes related to the Capitol breach. Nearly 500 have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement officers. As stated by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, the investigation trudges on, marking one of the most extensive inquiries in U.S. history.