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As America nears the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol, one of the police officers caught in the onslaught is fearful of a repeat event, and furious with those who continue minimize what he and his colleagues experienced that day.

U.S. Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell spoke to NPR about the “horrific” year he had recovering from his injuries and the mental trauma from January 6th. As he spoke about his efforts to get back on the job in an administrative role for the Capitol Police, Gonell explained that it is difficult whenever he runs into members of Congress who continue to run with the lie that former President Donald Trump won the election, the same lie that fueled his supporters in their violent attack on the Capitol.

“We risked our lives to give them enough time to get to safety. And allegedly, some of them were in communication with some of the rioters and with some of the coordinators or in the know of what would happen,” said Gonell. “And it

makes you question their motives and their loyalty for the country, as we were battling the mob in a brutal battle where I could have lost my life and my dear fellow officers, as well.”

Gonell continued to express his anger towards lawmakers who’ve downplayed the riot after “running for their lives” while he and his fellow officers held back the mob. Gonell was particularly enraged by former Vice President Mike Pence, who recently complained that Democrats and the media “want to use that one day to try and demean the character and intentions of 74 million Americans.”

Pence, of course, was targeted by members of the pro-Trump mob who demanded that he hang for not halting the 2020 election certification on Trump’s orders. Trump has shown a shocking disregard for Pence’s life since then, even defending his supporters who chanted “Hang Mike Pence.”

Gonell took notice of all of this, and he made clear he doesn’t approve of it:

That one day in January almost cost my life. And we did everything possible to prevent [Pence] from being hanged and killed in front of his daughter and his wife. And now he’s telling us that that one day in January doesn’t mean anything. It’s pathetic. It’s a disgrace. He swore an oath to the country, not to Donald Trump.

The interview went on with Gonell

sharing his disappointment that the Capitol rioters haven’t been more severely punished. He also said that he and his colleagues are afraid that there will be a repeat of the event someday.

“A lot of the officers have in mind the possibility of this being a recurring annual or every four-year thing, which is why officers like myself are being outspoken about it, because we don’t want to go through this again,” Gonell said. “It’s mind-boggling to hear some of the things that are coming from some of these elected officials. But at the end of the day, our job is to make them safe and make their work environment safer, regardless of our opinion or political affiliation.”

Tags: Aquilino Gonell, Capitol riot, Mike Pence