Trump supporter from Oklahoma pleads guilty to illegally going inside US Capitol

A Trump supporter from Oklahoma pleaded guilty Friday to a misdemeanor, admitting that he illegally went inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, for 34 minutes.

Levi Roy Gable, 37, of Chouteau, faces up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. His sentencing was set for Jan. 10 in federal court in Washington, D.C.

"Are you pleading guilty because you are guilty?" U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb asked him during a hearing held by video.

"Yes, your honor," he replied.

The illegal entry came just before Mike Pence, then the vice president, was evacuated from the Senate chambers, according to a statement of the offense. Gable was turned in by a college fraternity brother who saw videos of the riot and a post about it on his Facebook page, the FBI reported.

"I was among the first people to make our way into the US Capitol Building," he purportedly posted on Facebook, according to the FBI.

"Those in the building first were there in protest of Vice President Mike Pence’s statement that he would not stand with the American people and challenge the results of 2020’s stolen presidential election.

"We were there to make our voices be heard."

Gable had been charged with four misdemeanor counts. Under a plea agreement, three counts will be dismissed at his sentencing. He must pay $500 in restitution.

He was arrested in May in Tulsa.

Thousands marched on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, after then-President Donald Trump spoke at a rally and urged them to fight like hell.

Rioters overwhelmed Capitol police to breach the building, delaying the formal counting of the Electoral College votes that had Joe Biden winning the presidential election.

Trump had pressured Pence — as president of the Senate — to block the certification of the results. Pence refused, describing his role as largely ceremonial.

In the statement of his offense, Gable acknowledged that he traveled by plane from Oklahoma to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 5, 2021, to protest the certification.

He acknowledged that he attended the "Stop the Steal" rally on Jan. 6, 2021, and then marched with other protesters to the Capitol.

He entered the Capitol at approximately 2:19 p.m. through the Senate Wing Door after windows on both sides of the door had been smashed. according to the statement. About a minute later, Pence and members of the House and Senate "were instructed to − and did − evacuate the chambers."

"Gable, together with others, remained inside the Capitol at various locations ... until approximately 2:53 p.m.," according to the statement. He "falsely denied having entered the Capitol" during a law enforcement interview on Jan. 21, 2021.

In deciding his punishment, the judge will take into consideration Gable's criminal history. He pleaded guilty in 2005 to a federal bank robbery charge.

Gable has worked for his family's excavation company in Tulsa for years. He was vice president of Gable's Excavating at the time of his arrest. He is no longer mentioned in the "About Us" section of the company's website.

So far, nine Oklahomans have been charged out of the investigation of the attack on the Capitol. The last one was in July