FL Proud Boy Assaulted Officers During U.S. Capitol Breach: U.S. DOJ

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A Florida Proud Boy who assaulted officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol building was sentenced Thursday to 42 months in prison, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.

Zachary Johnson, 34, of St. Petersburg pleaded guilty Aug. 17 to one count of assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers. He was arrested Jan. 13, 2022.

He also faces 36 months of supervised release following his prison sentence.

Johnson, a member of the Tampa-area Proud Boys, traveled from Florida to Washington, D.C., to protest Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote in the 2020 presidential election.

Wearing a ballistic plate carrier and carrying a mouthguard and goggles, he met about 100 other Proud Boys at the base of the Washington Monument that day at 10 a.m., the DOJ said.

The group’s leaders organized the Proud Boys, including Johnson, into formation and marched them away from the Ellipse, before planned speeches started, directly toward the Capitol building.

The group arrived at the First Street gate of the Capitol grounds, where a line of officers and fences prevented entry, just before 1 p.m. They charged through the barricades and were among the first to breach the restricted perimeter, the DOJ said.

Johnson spent two hours on the West Plaza, where rioters eventually overran officers.

Around 3:15 p.m., he and four other members of the Tampa Proud Boys advanced into the area known as the Lower West Terrace Tunnel, where some of the most violent attacks against police happened that day, the DOJ said.

He was part of a collective push of rioters against the established law enforcement lines in place to prevent them from entering the building. Several rioters stole shields from the officers, which they passed back out of the tunnel.

Within minutes, officers pushed the rioters, including Johnson, out of the tunnel. He and others celebrated on the steps of the Lower West Terrace.

Outside the tunnel, Johnson joined a group of rioters who, again, were collectively pushing against the officers to breach their line and enter the Capitol.

He helped pass a sledgehammer and large pepper spray canister to the rioters closer to the entrance, the DOJ said. Those rioters sprayed the officers with the agent. He remained outside the tunnel until about 4:10 p.m.