A Texas man who joined the January 6, 2021, assault on the US Capitol was found guilty for his role in the attack on Tuesday, a milestone victory for federal prosecutors in the first such case to go before a jury.
Guy Reffitt was found guilty on all five of the felony charges he faced, including bringing a gun on to Capitol grounds and obstructing an official proceeding.
Reffitt's trial was seen as an important test case as the US Justice Department attempts to secure the convictions of hundreds of people allegedly involved in the attack who have not taken plea deals.
The federal jury in Washington returned the unanimous verdict after two hours of deliberation.
Reffitt, who is currently in custody, will learn the length of his prison sentence at a court hearing scheduled for June 8. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
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Donald Trump, the president at the time, speaks during a rally protesting the electoral college certification of Joe Biden as president in Washington on January 6, 2021. AP -
A mob loyal to Mr Trump tries to break through a police barrier at the Capitol. AP -
The mob waves pro-Trump flags in front of the Capitol building. AP -
Riot police push back a crowd of rioters at the Capitol building. AFP -
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the US Capitol building. AFP -
Insurrectionists loyal to Mr Trump try to open a door of the US Capitol building as they riot in Washington. AP -
US Capitol Police push back rioters trying to enter the US Capitol. AP -
Police and rioters confront each other in the Rotunda of the Capitol. US Capitol Police via AP -
Smoke fills the hallway outside the Senate chamber of the Capitol. AP -
Insurrectionists loyal to Mr Trump breach the Capitol in Washington. AP -
Trump supporters, including Doug Jensen, centre, confront US Capitol Police in the hallway outside the Senate chamber at the Capitol. AP -
Newly installed razor wire tops the fence surrounding the US Capitol following the January 6 riot. Reuters -
Security agents and members of Congress barricade the door to the House chamber as the violent mob breaches the Capitol. AP -
Rioter Jacob Chansley holds a sign referencing QAnon as supporters of Mr Trump gather to protest the early results of the 2020 presidential election. Reuters
Reffitt never entered the Capitol, but video showed him egging on the crowd and leading other rioters up a set of stairs outside the building.
Wearing a bulletproof vest and a helmet, Reffitt continued up the staircase even as police officers pelted him with pepper balls and doused him with chemical spray.
In a video clip played for jurors, Reffitt repeatedly urged rioters to drag House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress out of the Capitol building.
“I didn't come here to play — I'm taking the Capitol,” the video showed Reffitt saying at one point. “I just want to see Pelosi's head hitting every stair on the way out.”
Prosecutors also accused Reffitt of threatening his teenage children with harm if they turned him into authorities after the attack.
Reffitt's estranged son Jackson turned his father into the FBI and gave evidence against him during the week-long trial.
“He said, 'If you turn me in, you're a traitor,'” Jackson Reffitt told jurors. "'And traitors get shot.'”
About 200 people have already pleaded guilty to charges relating to the attack, which sent members of Congress and staff running for their lives.
The accused face charges including unlawful picketing and seditious conspiracy, with which 11 people affiliated with the right-wing group the Oath Keepers were charged in January.
Thousands of people stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, after a fiery speech in which Mr Trump claimed his election defeat was the result of widespread fraud — an assertion rejected by multiple courts, state election officials and members of his own administration.
