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Jan 6. Rioter Gets More Than Five Years in Prison for Assaulting Officers

Mark Ponder attacked a Capitol Police sergeant with a pole, ramming the makeshift weapon into the officer’s riot shield so hard that it broke.

A judge sentenced Mark Ponder to more than five years in federal prison for his actions on Jan. 6, making him tied for the longest sentence related to the insurrection so far. Ponder, a 56-year-old D.C. native, assaulted police officers during the riot, with some of his violence caught on video. According to a government sentencing memo, Ponder “charged” at Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, brandishing a pole at the officer before attacking him with it. As NBC News reported, the sentencing memo says that Ponder hit Gonell’s riot shield so hard that the pole broke. Gonell, who testified at the sentencing hearing, has previously told reporters that he will “never be back in uniform” because of his riot-related injuries. Though the government only asked for 60 months, or five years, the judge gave Ponder 63 months. Ponder told FBI agents that he believes the election was stolen.