Colorado Springs man pleads guilty to felony assault charge stemming from Jan. 6 riot at U.S. Capitol

A man from Colorado Springs has pleaded guilty to assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The felony charge against 49-year-old Jonathan David Grace stems from close to 30 minutes of interaction with law enforcement officers that included multiple instances of assault.

According to court documents, Grace was among a group of rioters who used stolen police shields to push against and hit officers in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel entrance to the Capitol. They then thrust their collective body weight into the officers and one could be heard screaming in pain as he was smashed between a shield and a metal door frame, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. 

Investigators also found Grace "watched close by as rioters dragged a Metropolitan Police Department officer out of the Tunnel and attacked him." Court documents did not name the officer.

The FBI identified Grace by matching stills from surveillance video taken at the Capitol to a driver's license photo provided by the Colorado Department of Motor Vehicles. The agency also cited financial transactions showing he traveled from Colorado to the greater Washington D.C. area and back in the days surrounding the riot.

He will be sentenced early next year in U.S. District Court.

According to the FBI, more than 1,100 individuals from all 50 states have been charged with crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 400 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. Grace is among at least a dozen people from Colorado sentenced or waiting to be sentenced for their roles in the breach. 

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.