A federal judge on Tuesday upheld the obstruction conviction of a Virginia man who stood trial along with members of the extremist group Oath Keepers in one of the most serious cases brought during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta rejected a defense effort to overturn a Washington jury’s guilty verdict against Thomas Caldwell, a retired U.S. Navy intelligence officer who was convicted in November along with Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes in the attack on the Capitol in the United States Capitol.

Mehta said there was sufficient evidence to find Caldwell, of Berryville, Virginia, guilty of obstructing an official proceeding in the case, congressional certification of President Biden’s 2020 election victory over Donald Trump and tampering with documents or procedures.

The judge said that although Caldwell did not enter the Capitol, there is evidence to support the argument that he assisted extremists who stormed the building. The judge pointed to Caldwell’s own words, including a message on the evening of January 6 in which he wrote: So I grabbed my American flag and said let’s take the damn capital… I said let’s storm the place and take the traitors to hang. .

Caldwell and his attorney, David Fischer, appeared via video conference as the judge read his ruling. Fischer later said Caldwell was disappointed but respected the court’s decision.

Caldwell was initially charged with seditious conspiracy, along with Rhodes and other far-right extremists, and he was described by the Justice Department as a key figure in what prosecutors said was a plot to stop Trump.

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in power after losing the 2020 election to Biden.

Ex-Proud Boys national leader Enrique Tarrio sentenced to 22 years for Jan. 6 attack

But jurors acquitted Caldwell of the sedition charge and two other conspiracy charges after a months-long trial.

Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in prison in May after jurors convicted him of seditious conspiracy and other serious charges. The judge postponed Caldwell’s sentencing while he considered his attorney’s challenge to the jury’s verdict. Caldwell’s sentencing is now set for November 16.

Prosecutors alleged that Caldwell helped coordinate rapid response force teams stationed outside Washington that were designed to get weapons into the hands of extremists when they were needed. The weapons were never deployed, and lawyers for the Oath Keepers said they were only there for defensive purposes in case of attacks by left-wing activists.

Caldwell took the witness stand at the trial and played messages he had sent leading up to January 6, including one that floated the idea of ​​getting a boat that would carry heavy weapons across the Potomac River transport. Caldwell said he never took it seriously and called it creative writing.”

Trump refuses to say in a TV interview how he saw the January 6 attack happen

Fischer, the defense attorney, noted that Caldwell was a disabled veteran who sometimes uses a cane to walk, and told jurors that he could not burst out of a paper bag. Fischer argued that there was no plot to attack the Capitol or stop the certification of Biden’s victory, and said Caldwell had not even planned to go to the Capitol until Trump’s speech urged his supporters to act as hell to fight before the riot.

All told, six Oath Keepers were convicted of seditious conspiracy, the most serious charge brought by prosecutors in the Jan. 6 attack. More than 1,100 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the riot, and more than 650 suspects have pleaded guilty.

After another trial, former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and three other Proud Boys were convicted of sedition, as prosecutors said it was a separate plot to stop the transition of power. Tarrio was sentenced this month to 22 years behind bars.