Minnesota man, who assaulted four officers during Jan. 6 Capitol riot, sentenced to nearly 3 years in prison

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Minnesota man, who repeatedly attacked police officers during the U.S. Capitol riot, wielded a police baton as a weapon and stole two riot shields, was sentenced this week to nearly three years in prison.

Brian Mock, 44, helped remove two police barricades before he assaulted four officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, siege. He shoved one of the officers in the chest and knocked him onto the ground, where other rioters kicked and hit him.

Mock asked for leniency before Chief Judge James Boasberg sentenced him to two years and nine months in prison.

“I’m not someone who showed up in tactical gear, with tasers and bear spray,” he said. “It’s a moment that I got caught up in.”

But the judge said Mock clearly came to Washington, D.C., expecting violence on Jan. 6.

“So it’s hard to think you came simply as a bystander,” Boasberg said.

Boasberg convicted Mock of all 11 counts in his indictment, including felony assault charges, after hearing testimony without a jury. Mock testified and represented himself at his July 2023 trial.

Prosecutors recommended sentencing Mock to nine years and one month in prison. He’ll get credit for the nearly one year that he spent in jail awaiting trial.

Mock said jail was a traumatic experience for him. The judge noted that Jan. 6 was a “scarring” experience for the officers whom he assaulted.

“These were searing moments for them and searing moments for the country,” Boasberg added.

Mock, a landscaping company owner and former debt collector, was arrested in June 2021 on riot-related charges. He wasn’t charged with entering the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Mock recruited his girlfriend and another friend to drive with him to Washington, D.C., for then-President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6. Before leaving, Mock told his oldest son that he might die there.

Mock was the focus of a New York Times article that explored his relationship with his oldest son. Prosecutors cited Mock’s comments to the newspaper as evidence of his lack of remorse and refusal to accept responsibility for his crimes.

“The Court cannot have any confidence that Mock would not engage in the exact same behavior in the future if he thought it was justified, if he thought — again — that it was a necessary and righteous response to what he perceived as tyranny,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing.

Defense attorney Michelle Peterson said Mock went to Washington because he believed there were “irregularities” in the 2020 presidential election that should be investigated.

“He is not an idealogue but rather is someone with firm beliefs that are on both sides of the political spectrum,” Peterson wrote.

Prosecutors said Mock has a “disturbing history of violence,” including charges that he assaulted his ex-wife in 2009. The woman later said she decided against pursuing the domestic violence charges because Mock blackmailed her and threatened to get her fired from her job, according to prosecutors.

The FBI said Mock also has a 2010 conviction on a weapon charge. The conviction stems from a 2009 incident in which Mock allegedly pointed a gun at the heads of three children and threatened to shoot them during his oldest son’s birthday party. Mock refused to leave his house after a SWAT team arrived.

“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.”

After Mock’s arrest on Jan. 6 charges, the then-girlfriend who joined him in Washington obtained a restraining order against him “because she felt scared of his behavior and potential behavior in the aftermath of their breakup,” prosecutors said.

“Mock cannot claim that violence was restricted to one time of his life or one set of relationships,” they wrote.

The judge who convicted and sentenced Mock described some of his trial testimony as “silly,” including his claim that he was referring to singer Nancy Sinatra — not then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — when he posted a Facebook message on Jan. 1, 2021, that said, “Well Nancy, that ain’t the worst thing that’s going to happen to you this week.”

Approximately 1,300 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the Capitol attack. Over 800 of them have been sentenced, with roughly two-thirds receiving prison terms ranging from a few days to 22 years.