Ex-NYPD cop, Thomas Webster, was sentenced to 10-years on Thursday for attacking a police officer with a metal flagpole during the January 6 Capitol riot. According to AP News, this sentence is the largest issued to date out of the hundreds held accountable in court for their actions during the siege.
During the incident for which Webster has been sentenced, he was seen brandishing the metal pole against police officers at the Capitol as they attempted to contain the swarm of people seeking to gain entry into the building. After swinging at DC officer Noah Rathbun with the pole, Webster then tackled him and used the chinstrap of the officer's helmet to choke him. Webster initially claimed that he was acting in self defense, according to AP News, but the jury rejected that claim.
During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta handed down three years of supervised release in addition to Webster's 10-year sentence saying that along with Officer Rathbun, "the other victim was democracy."
"It is not until you arrived, Mr. Webster, that all hell broke loose," Mehta said. "What you did that day, it is hard to really put into words. I still remain shocked every single time I see video of the attack."
Footage of Webster during the Jan. 6 riot can be seen below via a share on Twitter by CNN reporter Marshall Cohen.
NEW: Justice Dept. just released horrifying new footage from 1/6. Feds say this is ex-NYPD officer Thomas Webster (red jacket) wielding a flagpole, rushing at police & tackling a cop to the ground. DOJ released this after legal action by CNN and other outlets. (warning: explicit) pic.twitter.com/yf7DQQFMWr
— Marshall Cohen (@MarshallCohen) June 17, 2021
"Nothing can explain or justify Mr. Webster's rage," Assistant U.S. Attorney Hava Arin Levenson Mirell told Judge Mehta. "Webster is one of the rioters who should have known better."
56-year-old Webster, who was with the NYPD for 20-years, gave a statement to the court saying "I can never look at my kids the same way again. The way they look at me, it's different now. … I was their hero until January 6."
