Holt man sentenced to prison for role in Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A former body builder and model from Holt was sentenced to three years in federal prison Thursday for taking part in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol aimed at disrupting congressional action to certify the results of the 2020 election.
Logan Barnhart, nicknamed "#CatSweat" by online sleuths who used facial recognition software to identify rioters, pleaded guilty to assaulting, resisting or impeding officers who tried to repel the mob at the Capitol's archway.
The government said Barnhart grabbed an officer by the neck of his ballistic vest and helped as rioters dragged the officer down the steps, where the officer was beaten with batons and flagpoles.
Barnhart later helped propel other rioters into a line of officers and struck at officers with the base of a flagpole, federal officials said.
Barnhart was a star running back at Haslett High School during the late 1990s and led the varsity squad to the state finals in 1999.
An online group known as the Sedition Hunters dubbed Barnhart #CatSweat because of the Caterpillar sweatshirt he wore during the attack. Barnhart was captured in an image showing a man in a hooded "CAT" sweatshirt holding onto a Metropolitan Police officer while the officer was being dragged down stairs outside a tunnel on the western side of the U.S. Capitol, the Huffington Post reported.
The Sedition Hunters group uncovered video of Barnhart during the Trump rally at the White House Ellipse immediately before the Capitol attack, HuffPost said. That video showed him without sunglasses and was compared with other photos of Barnhart posted on bodybuilding websites and photography portfolios, HuffPost said.
Searchers also studied content posted on Barnhart's Instagram account, in which he described himself as a pipe layer and heavy equipment operator, the publication said.
Online investigators also determined that Barnhart, sans shirt, had been on the cover of several romance novels, including “Stepbrother UnSEALed: A Bad Boy Military Romance," “Lighter” (which included the slogan “wrong never felt so right"), and "Crash and Burn," according to published reports.
Barnhart was indicted on multiple counts in August 2021, including disruptive conduct and engaging in physical violence. He pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer, and the remaining charges were dismissed.
According to Barnhart's plea agreement, the riot — led by supporters of former president Donald Trump — caused approximately $1.5 million in damage to the U.S. Capitol. Barnhart agreed to pay $2,000 in restitution to capitol architects, as well as a payment to the injured police officer, which had yet to be determined.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras ordered that Barnhart remain on supervised release for three years after serving his prison term. The judge ordered $2,000 in restitution and a fine of $3,688, plus as $100 special sssessment fee.
The Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the Capitol was not the first time Barnhart participated in a riot.
In 1999, he was charged with inciting a riot in connection with a melee in East Lansing that caused about $145,000 in damages to the city and the Michigan State University campus, according to State Journal archives. Police said he helped tip over a car.
Barnhart pleaded guilty to unlawful assembly, a maximum five-year felony, and was sentenced to 45 days in jail, 2 years' probation and 100 hours of community service. He also was ordered to pay $5,500 in restitution and fees.
Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter at @kbpalm_lsj.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Holt's Logan Barnhart sentenced to prison for role in U.S. Capitol riot
