Virginia Man Sentenced for Role in Jan. 6 Capitol Breach
A Virginia resident has been sentenced to prison after being convicted on multiple charges stemming from the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. The incident disrupted a joint session of Congress assembled to count the electoral votes for the 2020 presidential election.
Antonio Lamotta, 64, of Chesapeake, Virginia, received a six-month prison sentence, followed by 24 months of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb also ordered Lamotta to pay $2,000 in restitution. Following a March 2024 bench trial in the District of Columbia, Judge Cobb found Lamotta guilty of civil disorder, a felony, as well as two misdemeanors: disorderly conduct in a Capitol building and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
According to court documents, Lamotta traveled from Chesapeake to Washington, D.C., on January 4, 2021, and urged other “patriots” to “get in here asap” via Facebook. On January 6, he attended a rally near the Senate Russell Building before approaching the U.S. Capitol from the East side, where rioters had taken control.
Lamotta and other rioters forced entry into the Capitol through the East Rotunda Doors despite alarms and resistance from U.S. Capitol Police. Inside the building, Lamotta continued moving toward the Rotunda, observed law enforcement efforts to clear the area, and motioned—nineteen times—for other rioters to advance. Officers eventually pushed the rioters out, but Lamotta attempted to hold his ground as others resisted the officers.
Officers ultimately expelled Lamotta and others through the East Rotunda Door around 3:30 p.m. Lamotta remained on Capitol grounds until approximately 5 p.m.
The FBI arrested Lamotta on August 16, 2022.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section prosecuted the case, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, with support from the United States Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.
Since the events of January 6, 2021, more than 1,504 individuals have been charged across nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the Capitol breach, including over 560 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation is ongoing.
