FL Proud Boy Captured After Disappearing Ahead Of Jan. 6 Sentencing

NAPLES, FL — A Florida man and self-identified member of the far-right extremist group Proud Boys who disappeared days before his sentencing for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol was found unconscious in his Naples home, according to an Associated Press report citing the FBI.

Christopher Worrell, 52, was taken to a hospital where he remained on Friday, the FBI's Tampa office told the AP. The FBI did not provide further details about his condition but did say Worrell tried to "covertly return" to his home after disappearing in August.

Worrell was scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 18 after he was found guilty of spraying pepper gel on police officers when he and thousands of others stormed the U.S. Capitol as Congress gathered to certify Joe Biden's presidential victory. Prosecutors had asked a judge to sentence him to 14 years in prison.

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The sentencing was canceled and a bench warrant for his arrest was issued for his arrest, according to court records.

Worrell had been on house arrest in Florida since his release from jail in November 2021, less than a month after a judge substantiated his civil rights complaints about his treatment in the jail.

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth found Worrell's medical care for a broken hand had been delayed and held D.C. jail officials in contempt of court.

Evidence presented during Worrell's five-day trial in May showed he was part of the "Hurricane Coast Zone 5" Proud Boys chapter. In the weeks leading up to the Jan. 6 attack, Worrell and other Proud Boys members used an encrypted chat app to voice their hatred toward police.

On the morning of Jan. 6, prosecutors said Worrell, dressed in a tactical vest and carrying two canisters of pepper gel, marched with other Proud Boys from the Washington Monument to the U.S. Capitol. As he passed police officers, he warned them not to resist, stating, "Honor your oaths, on your knees" and "Don't make us go against you."

By 1 p.m., Worrell and other Proud Boys members breached the Capitol, where he filmed himself calling Capitol police officers "scum," "pieces of s---" and "commies."

During the attack, Worrell sprayed pepper gel at a line of officers. He also shoved two officers defending a staircase leading to the Upper West Terrace of the Capitol.

Worrell was arrested on March 12 in Naples.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.