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Press Release

Iowa Man Sentenced to 86 Months in Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement Officer During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia
Defendant Joined in Attack on MPD Officer Who Was Dragged Into Mob of Rioters

            WASHINGTON – An Iowa man was sentenced today to 86 months in prison for assaulting a law enforcement officer during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His and others’ actions disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Kyle Young, 38, of Redfield, Iowa, was sentenced in the District of Columbia.

            According to court documents, Young was among a mob of people participating in the assault of law enforcement officers in the Lower West Terrace of the Capitol and the Archway that leads into the building. A group of officers from the U.S. Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) formed a line at the door to prevent the mob from entering.

            At around 2:54 p.m., Young joined the rioters who were pushing against the police line. While in the tunnel area beneath the Archway, he held a strobe light toward the police line and pushed forward a stick-like object. He assisted in throwing a large audio speaker toward the police line. As officers began to push the mob back from the doors around 3:18 p.m., another rioter pulled a Metropolitan Police Department officer through the tunnel and into the crowd outside.

            The MPD officer – wearing a uniform, marked helmet and tactical vest – was assaulted while he was in the mob by rioters, including Young. Young held the officer’s left wrist and pulled the officer’s arm away from his body. The MPD officer was then swept further in the crowd. He was rendered momentarily helpless when an individual repeatedly applied a taser to the back of his neck.

            According to court documents, as the violence continued in the Lower West Terrace area, Young also made contact with the helmet of a Capitol Police Officer who was pulled into the crowd.

            Young was arrested on April 14, 2021. He was indicted in April 2021 with two co-defendants accused of participating in the same attack. He pleaded guilty on May 5, 2022, to assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers. Following his prison term, he will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also must pay $2,000 in restitution.

            The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

            The case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI’s Washington and Omaha Field Offices. Young was identified as #116 on the Washington Field Office’s seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police.

            In the 20 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 870 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 265 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing. 

             Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Updated September 27, 2022

Topic
Violent Crime
Press Release Number: 22-320