WASHINGTON — A 56-year-old Canton man has been sentenced after pleading guilty for his role in the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
According to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice, John Douglas Wright was sentenced to 49 months in prison for obstruction of an official proceeding. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered 36 months of supervised release and $2,000 restitution.
Authorities accused Wright of organizing two charter buses that he owned to take 100 people to Washington on the day of the riot. The buses parked at Union Station in Washington.
From there, Wright and the group walked to the nearby U.S. Capitol, where he illegally entered the grounds and joined a group of other people that pushed against a metal barricade against federal law enforcement officers in an attempt to break through the security perimeter and advance towards the Capitol.
About 15 minutes after the breach, Wright walked through the Capitol Rotunda, took video, posted a video to Facebook Live and smoked a cigarette before leaving. Wright is also alleged to have made posts about the incident on social media stating: “SET ON NICE BENCH IN ROTUNDA AND HAD A SMOKE,” “YESTERDAY WAS A PRACTICE RUN,” and “I THINK WE NEED TO MAKE HOME VISITS.”
On the day after the riot, Wright participated in an interview with a newspaper where he was quoted, “Yesterday wasn’t the end. Yesterday was the first battle of the war. I promise you.”
Wright was arrested for his role in the incident on May 3, 2021, in Canton.
3News' Ben Axelrod contributed to this story