Proud Boy who fled police after being convicted for Jan. 6 receives 10 years

Jan. 5 (UPI) -- A judge in Florida has handed down a 10-year sentence to a Florida member of the Proud Boys who led authorities on a six-week pursuit after he disappeared on being convicted for his actions during the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Christopher Worrell, 52, of Naples, Fla., was convicted on multiple misdemeanor and felony charges in May following a five-day bench trial during which evidence showed he was among the mob that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to prevent Joe Biden from being certified as the 46th president of the United States.

During the assault, Worrell was documented in photos pepper spraying a line of police officers trying to defend the building on the West Plaza, and then later boasted about it, the Justice Department said.

The self-professed Proud Boy was initially scheduled to be sentenced in August, but days before his court appearance, he cut off his ankle GPS monitor in the parking lot of a Walmart and fled.

Following a six-week manhunt, Worrell was arrested late September by police as he attempted to slip back into his Naples home that was under surveillance. Night-vision goggles, a bag with new camping gear and $4,000 in cash was found in his poisson.

During the arrest, Worrell suffered what appeared to be an opioid overdose that required he be hospitalized for five days, though he later admitted it was a delay tactic.

Judge Royce Lamberth sentenced Worrell to 120 months in prison on Thursday and ordered that he be under 36 months' supervised release.

According to court documents, the FBI became aware of Worrell's involvement in the insurrection on Jan. 13, 2021, by an acquaintance of the Proud Boy's girlfriend, who told the tipster that he had traveled to Washington to be there on Jan. 6.

In the nearly three years since the assault, more than 1,200 people have been charged nationwide, including more than 400 like Worrell with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.