RIOTER WHO MENACED OFFICER WITH CONFEDERATE FLAG GETS PRISON
A Delaware man who threatened a Black police officer with a pole attached to a Confederate battle flag as he stormed the U.S. Capitol was sentenced on Thursday to three years in prison.
Kevin Seefried, 53, tearfully apologized for his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot before U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden sentenced him.
“I never wanted to send a message of hate,” Seefried said.
McFadden said it was deeply troubling that Seefried wielded the flagpole as a weapon against the officer.
“Bringing a Confederate flag into one of our nation’s most sacred halls was outrageous,” the judge said.
McFadden allowed Seefried to remain free until he must report to prison at a date to be determined.
Justice Department prosecutors had recommended a prison sentence of five years and 10 months for Seefried, a drywall mechanic from Laurel, Del.
Seefried and his adult son, Hunter, stormed the Capitol together after attending the “Stop the Steal” rally, where then-President Donald Trump addressed thousands of supporters in Washington.
In October, McFadden sentenced Hunter Seefried to two years of imprisonment.
Widely published photographs showed Kevin Seefried carrying his Confederate f lag inside the Capitol after he and his son, then 22, entered the building through a broken window.
Kevin Seefried told an FBI agent that he did not view the Confederate flag as a symbol of racist hate. FBI agents said they did not find any evidence linking him or his son to any far-right extremist groups.
McFadden convicted the father and son of riot-related charges in June after hearing two days of trial testimony without a jury.