A man who stormed the US Capitol on Jan. 6 dressed as a caveman and later boasted that his family connections would protect him, was sentenced to serve time behind bars for his role in the insurrection.
Aaron Mostofsky, 35, the son of Kings County Supreme Court Judge Steven Mostofsky, was sentenced to eight-months in prison by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg on Friday.
“What you and others did on that day imposed an indelible stain on how our country is perceived,” Boasberg told him, according to Law & Crime. “You dressed up as a caveman and acted a role like a fantasy game.”
Mostofsky told the judge that he was ashamed of his actions, and that he got wrapped up in the moment. “When it started getting chaotic to a point that I had never experienced, I started to make bad decisions,” he said.
Mostofsky pleaded guilty to a felony charge of civil disorder and two misdemeanor charges of theft of government property and entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds in February.
According to prosecutors, Mostofsky took a bus from New York to Washington and joined protesters in overwhelming a police line and storming the Capitol.
“He forcibly pushed against officers who were attempting to adjust barriers in the West Terrace area to keep rioters from entering the Capitol building,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo.
The memo added: “Mostofsky stole protective gear, a Capitol Police bullet-proof vest and a riot shield, leaving police officers who might have used those items more vulnerable during the violent attack at the U.S. Capitol.”
Prosecutors also said Mostofsky thought his family connections could protect him from consequences for his role in the riot.
On Jan. 10, he wrote in an encrypted chat on Signal that his “brother is connected to conservative party and my father’s a Judge; so, unlike other situations… they have nothing on me.”
Prosecutors recommended a sentence of 15 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
In the end he was sentenced to 8 months in jail, 2 months supervised release and 200 hours of community service. Mostofsky also agreed to pay $2,000 restitution.
