A FL Man Pleaded Guilty In An Oath Keeper-Affiliated Conspiracy Tied To Capitol Breach.

PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL — A South Florida man affiliated with the Oath Keepers organization pleaded guilty Wednesday to crimes related to the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol breach that disrupted the counting of the electoral votes in the 2020 presidential election.

According to court documents, Jason Dolan, 45, of Wellington in Palm Beach County planned his activities on Jan. 6 in advanced coordination with individuals and affiliates of the Oath Keepers, the Department of Justice said in a news release.

The Oath Keepers is a large but loosely organized group of individuals, some of whom have ties to militias.

Dolan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of obstruction of an official proceeding in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

He admitted to communicating with co-conspirators in advance of Jan. 6 and discussing the need to bring firearms, the DOJ said. According to his plea, Dolan drove with others from Florida to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 4 and 5. He brought with him an M4 rifle and dropped it off with at least one of the co-conspirators at a hotel in Arlington, Virginia.

On the morning of Jan. 6, Dolan met up with some of the co-conspirators at an event near the White House. He admitted to walking toward the Capitol building in the early afternoon and entering restricted grounds around 1:52 p.m.

Around 2:02 p.m., Dolan joined the growing crowd on the central east steps of the Capitol. He admitted to making physical contact with one of the U.S. Capitol police officers who were trying to keep the crowd at bay, the DOJ said.

After this, around 2:35 p.m., he stood at the top of the steps on the east side of the Capitol and joined some co-conspirators who had walked up in a “stack” formation with each person keeping a hand on the shoulder of the person in front.

A few minutes later, Dolan was present on the plaza outside the east Rotunda doors, where some co-conspirators and other individuals pushed against the Capitol police officers defending the building, eventually forcing the doors open. The doors were significantly damaged, and Dolan unlawfully entered the building, the DOJ said.

According to his plea, at the time Dolan entered the building, he believed that he and the co-conspirators were trying to obstruct, influence and impede an official proceeding by stopping or delaying the certification of the electoral college vote.

In the weeks after Jan. 6, Dolan deleted certain data from his cell phone, including photographs and encrypted communications with at least some of the co-conspirators, the DOJ said.