WASHINGTON — A Kansas Proud Boy who carried a wooden ax handle into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, pleaded guilty Monday to two felony counts for his role in the riot.
William “Billy” Chrestman, 49, of Olathe, pleaded guilty to one count each of obstruction of an official proceeding and threatening a federal officer. He’ll face an estimated 51-63 months in prison at his sentencing hearing on Jan. 12.
Chrestman was one of dozens of members of the far-right Proud Boys, including at least five from the Kansas City chapter, who came to D.C. on Jan. 6 and ultimately joined a pro-Trump mob at the Capitol. Five members of the group, including former national chairman Enrique Tarrio, have since been convicted of seditious conspiracy in connection with a plot to incite the crowd to overwhelm police and disrupt the joint session of Congress that was meeting to certify the 2020 presidential election.
According to charging documents, Chrestman, a U.S. Army veteran, marched with other Proud Boys to the Capitol, where he incited the crowd and helped to dismantle metal bike rack barricades. Chrestman also allegedly threatened police, shouting, “You shoot and I’ll take your f***ing a** out!”
Once inside the Capitol, Chrestman used a wooden ax handle to prevent metal barriers from closing and preventing him and other rioters from penetrating further into the building.
Chrestman has been held in pre-trial detention since his arrest in February 2021, when he was indicted alongside five other defendants linked to the Kansas City Proud Boys chapter. Three of his co-defendants have since pleaded guilty: Christoher Kuehne, Louis Enrique Colon and Ryan Ashlock. Ashlock pleaded guilty in June to one misdemeanor count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and was sentenced to 70 days in jail. Colon pleaded guilty in April to a felony count of civil disorder. Kuehne pleaded guilty to the same count last month. Both men await sentencing. Two other defendants, Felicia and Cory Konold, are scheduled for a change-of-plea hearing on Nov. 1.
Nearly 800 people have now been convicted or pleaded guilty to crimes related to the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol, including dozens of members of the Proud Boys. As of Oct. 6, the Justice Department says more than 1,185 people have been charged in connection with the riot.