Prison for Twin Cities man who assaulted officers during the Jan. 6 insurrection in Washington

A Minneapolis man on Thursday was sentenced to prison for joining the mob of Donald Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and temporarily disrupted Congress as it worked to certify the 2020 presidential election.

Brian C. Mock, 45, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to two years and nine months after he was found guilty of all 11 charges following a bench trial in July.

Mock was charged with assaulting law enforcement officers during the insurrection, which saw supporters of the former president rioting as they denied the validity of his loss to Joe Biden.

Mock, a landscape company owner and former debt collector, was arrested in Minneapolis in June 2021. He had asked Chief Judge James Boasberg for leniency. “I’m not someone who showed up in tactical gear, with Tasers and bear spray. It’s a moment that I got caught up in,” he said.

Prosecutors said video showed Mock committed four assaults during the violence outside the Capitol. They said he threw a broken flag pole at a line of police and after pushing down two officers, tried to kick one of them. They said Mock shoved another officer in the back.

He was also charged with taking two police riot shields and obstructing an official proceeding.

Boasberg said Mock came to the nation’s capital expecting violence, “so it’s hard to think you came simply as a bystander.”

In a pre-sentencing filing, prosecutors pressed the judge for a prison sentence of slightly more than nine years.

“Mock left no ambiguity about what he felt necessary,” the filing read. “He called for ‘total rebellion,’ which he described as a ‘Redeclaration of Independence, a [thorough] cleansing of our political/judicial system, complete upheaval of the monetary system/economy, a complete destruction of the Federal government, and a new set of laws.’”

The defense argued in a court filing that Mock shouldn’t have to serve any more time behind bars and should be put on supervised release.

“Mr. Mock’s conduct was certainly more serious than many who wandered through the Capitol but is far less serious than those who used weapons they brought or weapons they found to cause serious bodily injury to police officers,” the defense said. “Mr. Mock did not use a dangerous weapon and did not cause bodily injury to the officers involved.”

Mock was given credit for nearly one year that he spent in jail awaiting trial.

In last month’s defense filing, Mock continued to question the validity of Biden’s victory over Trump.

“I felt the courts had failed to properly hear and investigate the claims of fraud, interference, etc.,” he wrote. “I was there to show support to lawmakers who I believed had the ability to pursue legal avenues to investigate those claims and rectify the situation if they chose.

“I was not there with any intent to stop any proceeding or usurp the law. ... It was simply to practice my First Amendment rights.”

The FBI said Mock was convicted in 2010 in Anoka County for pointing a gun at the heads of three children and threatening to shoot them during his oldest son’s birthday part in 2009.

During the incident, a SWAT team was called, but Mock refused to leave his house.

“Instead, he barricaded himself inside with his gun, shaved his head, and told the police they would have to get a warrant,” prosecutors wrote. “Many hours later, a police negotiator finally coaxed Mock outside.”

According to a U.S. Justice Department database, 13 Minnesotans have been charged with taking part in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

In November, Victoria C. White, 41, of Rochester was sentenced to 10 days in prison after pleading guilty to one felony count of interfering with law enforcement. White’s sentence included three months of home confinement and two years of supervised release.

Since the Capitol attack, more than 1,260 people have been charged in nearly every state with crimes related to the violence.

The mob inside the Capitol sent lawmakers, staff members and others running for their lives. But it did not stop the House from certifying Biden’s Electoral College victory.

Federal authorities continues to accept tips about others who may have had a role in the insurrection. Information can be submitted at 800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or online at tips.fbi.gov.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.