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Florida woman pleads guilty to participating in US Capitol attack

Insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.
Julio Cortez
/
AP
Insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.

A Florida woman has pleaded guilty to participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol following a rally held by then-President Donald Trump.

Corinne Montoni, 33, of Lakeland, pleaded guilty Monday to felony civil disorder in District of Columbia federal court, according to court records. She faces up to five years in prison at a sentencing hearing scheduled for Sept. 28.

Montoni was arrested in March 2021.

According to court documents, Montoni joined with others objecting to Democratic President Joe Biden’s election victory over the Republican Trump. A mob attacked the Capitol in an attempt to stop Congress from certifying election results, authorities said. Five people died in the violence.

Montoni unlawfully entered the Capitol through a broken door next to the Senate wing door on the west side of the building, prosecutors said. She made her way to the Capitol crypt, where she took several videos with her cell phone, including one video posted to her Instagram account in which she states, “We’re in the Capitol cuz this is our house – we paid for this, and they’re trying to steal it from us. Let’s go!”

According to court documents, Montoni posted on social media throughout the day about her experiences at the Capitol. On her Parler account, she wrote, “WE BREACHED THE CAPITOL OMG“; On her Facebook account, she wrote, “We are DONE with these traitors. Today, we showed them how done we are. The Capitol building belongs to Us, we the people. This is our house.”

More than 1,000 people have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for alleged crimes related to the Capitol breach, officials said. More than 350 people have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

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