Federico “Freddie” Guillermo Klein, 45, of Falls Church, Virginia, United States served in the U.S. Marine Corps for almost nine years. In 2005, he was deployed to Iraq as a combat engineer.
From January 2017 to January 2021, Klein served as one of the appointees of 45th U.S. president Donald Trump. On January 6, 2021, Klein was among the rioters who breached the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., USA while a joint session of Congress was certifying the vote of the Electoral College and affirming Joe Biden‘s victory in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
During the riot, Klein was one of the first rioters to enter the tunnel of the U.S. Capitol. He wedged a stolen police riot shield between two doors, which prevented officers from closing them.
“We need fresh people!” Klein repeatedly yelled, encouraging other rioters to attack police. His conduct prolonged the mayhem in the tunnel, according to U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden.
On March 4, 2021, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents arrested Klein in Virginia, making him the first appointee of Trump arrested in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. On March 5, 2021, Klein made his first court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui.
“I’m wondering if there’s a place I could stay in detention where I don’t have cockroaches crawling over me while I’m trying to sleep,” Klein told Faruqui. “I haven’t really slept all that much, your Honor. It would be nice if between now and Tuesday I could sleep in a place where there are not cockroaches all over.”
Klein did not testify at his trial. On July 20, 2023, McFadden convicted Klein on civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding and six counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding police, which are felonies, and on four misdemeanor counts.
On November 3, 2023, McFadden sentenced Klein to 70 months in prison and 24 months of supervised release. The judge also ordered the Falls Church resident to pay $5,000 in fines and restitution.
CONAN Daily 