Capitol rioter accused of assisting in Pelosi laptop theft pleads guilty to other charges

A New York man who is accused of assisting in the theft of a laptop belonging to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the Capitol has pleaded guilty to other charges stemming from his participation in the riot. 

Rafael Rondon of Watertown, N.Y., pleaded guilty in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Monday to obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting in the obstruction of an official proceeding, according to the Justice Department.

According to court documents, Rondon and his mother, Maryann Mooney-Rondon, entered Pelosi’s suite and went into a conference room, where they assisted a man in the theft of the laptop.

The rioters, supporters of former President Trump, stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 in an attempt to stop Congress’s official count of Electoral College votes that affirmed Joe Biden as the president.

Mooney-Rondon, 56, is facing similar charges for her actions during the Capitol riot but has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting further court proceedings.

Federal authorities arrested and formally charged a Pennsylvania woman, Riley June Williams, 23, with stealing Pelosi’s laptop during the Capitol riot last October.  

A witness who identified himself as Williams’s former romantic partner told authorities that Williams planned to sell Pelosi’s laptop to a friend in Russia.

Rondon, who has been charged with theft and other crimes related to the Capitol riot since being arrested by authorities last October, is expected to be sentenced next March. 

Rondon faces a 20-year maximum prison sentence.

Nearly 900 individuals have been arrested across the U.S. for crimes related to the Capitol breach, according to the Justice Department.