Capitol Rioter Sentenced After Wife Accidentally Implicated Him in Facebook Status
Gary Edwards’ role in the attempted insurrection was revealed in a hastily deleted Facebook status from his wife.

Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
A man whose participation in the Capitol insurrection was inadvertently revealed by his wife in a Facebook status has been sentenced to a year of probation, 200 hours of community service, and fined $2,500. Gary Edwards—a 68-year-old from Churchville, Pennsylvania—reportedly told a federal judge at his Monday sentencing that he was “ashamed” about his part in the riot, which included entering the Capitol through a broken window and walking into the ransacked office of Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR). Edwards’ role in the insurrection was revealed in a hastily deleted Facebook status from his wife, which began: “Okay ladies, let me tell you what happened as my husband was there inside the Capitol.” One of her Facebook friends then forwarded the status to federal agents. “Never in my life could I have dreamed that something I posted on Facebook would be used against my husband, would lead him to be arrested,” Lynn Edwards said in court, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
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