Despite his important involvement in the unrest, one of the suspected instigators of the US Capitol riot received only a year’s probation after pleading guilty to disruptive conduct in a restricted place.
Ray Epps, who rioted on January 6, must perform 100 hours of community service and pay a $500 reparation charge, according to Chief District Judge James Boasberg of the US District Court for the District of Columbia.
The punishment is shockingly mild in comparison to other offenders, including some who never entered the Capitol or were not even in Washington, DC at the time of the incident, who received two-decade or longer prison sentences. The court’s decision to allow Epps to “phone in” to his sentencing hearing raised fears that he could have been working for the FBI or another agency when he repeatedly urged groups of protesters to enter the building.
Epps can be seen encouraging rioters in footage posted to social media by fellow Stop the Steal protesters on January 6, and the night before.
In one clip, fellow demonstrator Tim Gionet (better known as YouTube streamer Baked Alaska) responds by initiating a chant of “Fed!” – accusing Epps of being a federal agent.
“No jail time for Ray Epps! “Totally not a fed, btw,” Gionet stated in a message on X (previously Twitter) on Tuesday after the punishment.
“Meanwhile, there are truly peaceful protesters ROTTING in prison simply for wandering onto Capitol grounds,” said commenter Nick Sortor in a post on X.
While Epps first appeared on the FBI’s “wanted” website for January 6 demonstrators, he was quickly removed without being caught, prompting many to believe he was working with the agency or another government institution to incite the mob.
After various conservative influencers, including former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson, openly accused Epps of being an agent tasked with “stage-manag[ing] the insurrection,” he was eventually jailed and sued Fox News.
He alleged that Fox had unjustly used him as a “scapegoat,” accusing them of “promoting the lie that Epps was a federal agent who incited the attack on the Capitol.”
Epps later claimed he tried to “defuse the situation” at the Capitol, saying he was “shocked and disappointed” to witness people climbing the government building’s walls during the disturbance.
Many of those charged on January 6 received heavy penalties, regardless of their closeness to the actual disturbance. Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the Proud Boys (and a government informant), who was not in Washington, DC on that date, received 22 years, while Guy Reffitt, whose own son turned him in to the FBI, received seven years despite remaining outside the Capitol during the unrest.
