In this Jan. 6, 2021 file photo, supporters of President Donald Trump, including Aaron Mostofsky, right, who is identified in his arrest warrant, walk down the stairs outside the Senate Chamber in the U.S. Capitol, in Washington. Federal agents arrested Mostofsky, the son of a New York judge, on charges that he was among the protestors who stormed the U.S. Capitol, the FBI said on Tuesday, Jan. 12.
Manuel Balce Ceneta | AP
A Brooklyn man who clashed with police, snatched officers’ gear and broke into the Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot — all while dressed as a caveman — pleaded guilty to a felony civil disorder charge, the Department of Justice said Wednesday.
The man, 35-year-old Aaron Mostofsky, the son of a New York judge, also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of stealing government property and entering and remaining in a restricted building, the Justice Department said in a press release.
He faces a maximum sentence of five years behind bars and a hefty fine for the felony charge alone, the DOJ said, though his final sentence may be lower.
Hundreds of former President Donald Trump‘s supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, forcing lawmakers to flee their chambers and temporarily blocking the process of transferring power to President Joe Biden, who won the 2020 presidential election. Many of the rioters were spurred by Trump’s false assertion that the election had been stolen from him through widespread fraud.
On the day of the attack, Mostofsky had traveled by bus to Capitol Hill from New York City and had posted “DC bound stopthesteal” en route, according to a DOJ court filing stating his offense.
He was dressed as a caveman and carrying a walking stick, explaining to a friend at one point that “the fraud in the 2020 Presidential Election was so obvious, even a caveman would know the election was stolen,” the DOJ said.
Shortly before 1 p.m., Mostofsky joined a group of rioters trying to force through a police line outside the Capitol. “Mostofsky used his weight and strength in the effort to break the police line,” the DOJ said.
As he made his way up toward the entrance to the Senate wing, Mostofsky picked up and put on a U.S. Capitol Police bullet-proof vest. He then entered the building through a door that other rioters had busted open from the inside, the DOJ said.
Aaron Mostofsky, son of Kings County Supreme Court Judge Shlomo Mostofsky, appears before Magistrate Judge Sanket J. Bulsara during his initial appearance in connection with the occupation of the U.S. Capitol, at the Eastern District of New York, January 12, 2021.
Jane Rosenberg | Reuters
Once inside, Mostofsky quickly grabbed an officer’s riot shield, then joined the mob at a staircase “where they pursued a U.S. Capitol Police Officer upstairs” to a corridor outside the Senate chamber, according to the DOJ.
Mostofsky gave an interview to a reporter before leaving the Capitol around 2:36 p.m. He was “stripped of the shield” by a Capitol police officer as he left, the DOJ said.
Mostofsky is set to be sentenced on May 6. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the charge of felony civil disorder. Each of the misdemeanor charges carry a maximum one-year prison term and a $100,000 fine.
More than 725 individuals in almost every state in the U.S. have now been charged with crimes related to the riot. More than 225 of those people have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.
Mostofsky’s plea adds to the more than 165 people who have now pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from the attack. The DOJ continues to investigate.
