Ex-NYPD Cop Turned MAGA Fanatic Sentenced to 10 YEARS in Prison For Beating Police on Jan. 6

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A former New York City cop has been handed the stiffest sentence yet for participating in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol after he was found guilty of assaulting a Capitol Police officer.

Thomas Webster, 56, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after he assaulted officers with a flag and tried to remove the gas mask one of them was wearing.

He was filmed charging at officers with a Marine Corps flag and knocking down crowd control barriers. He grabbed officer Noah Rathbun’s mask strap, exposing him to tear gas.

He was charged with multiple crimes, including felony assault.

The Washington Post reported:

Video showed Webster yelling at police on the Lower West Plaza of the Capitol, as officers struggled to maintain a perimeter outside the building. Rathbun then pushed Webster in the face — Rathbun testified his hand slipped off Webster’s shoulder — before Webster swung and smashed a Marine Corps flagpole on a bike rack and then tackled Rathbun.

Webster pulled the officer’s gas mask off, causing Rathbun to begin choking on tear gas, the officer testified.

Webster claimed he was simply defending himself. His defense team also argued his encounter with Capitol officers gave him flashbacks to a time an armed robber tried to take his service weapon while he was in the NYPD.

Rather than seek a plea deal, Webster chose to take it to trial. His claims of PTSD were not enough to spare him a conviction.

Jurors viewed video of his actions and found him guilty in fewer than three hours back in May.

The federal government asked Judge Amit Mehta to sentence Webster to 17 years behind bars. Mehta opted for a 120-month sentence.

Webster served in the Marines from 1985 to 1989. He took a job as a police officer in 1990 and served in the NYPD until 2011, and served as security for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg for a period of time.