Jan. 6 rioter who ripped officer's gas mask in ‘sadistic’ attack sentenced to 7 years

Ryan J. Reilly
·2 min read
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WASHINGTON — A Jan. 6 rioter who ripped at an officer's gas mask during the brutal battle in the lower west tunnel leading into the Capitol was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison on Friday.

Steven Cappuccio was sentenced to 85 months in prison during a sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, a Donald Trump appointee.

The government had sought more than 10 years in federal prison, saying the "sadistic cruelty" of Cappuccio's attack on Officer Daniel Hodges warranted a lengthy sentence.

“How do you like me now, mother f---er?" Cappuccio screamed during the attack. “How do you like me now, f---er?!” He stuck his phone in his mouth, video presented at trial shows, so he could use both hands to attack Hodges.

Steven Cappuccio raises a
Steven Cappuccio raises a

Hodges had to seek medical attention after the attack and had an MRI; footage of the attack on him in the Capitol tunnel played prominently in the Jan. 6 Committee's public hearings.

Cappuccio, a veteran, claimed ahead of sentencing that PTSD was in part responsible for his actions that day, but Hodges, who is also a veteran, struck back at that claim in a statement to the court.

"I'm curious at what point did his mental health condition allegedly take all agency away from his rational mind: Did it seize him before he drove 1,600 miles from his home in Texas to the Capitol? Or only partway, when he stopped to buy goggles for his peaceful First Amendment assembly?" Hodges wrote. "Was he in control when he trespassed onto the Capitol grounds after Trump instructed him to march there? When he moved through the mob, pushing his way to the vanguard of the assault, and fought to break our [defenses]?"

"When did he regain his senses?" Hodges continued. "Was it before or after he tried to kill me?"

Steven Cappuccio grabs Officer Daniel Hodges mask (United States Attorney for the District of Columbia)
Steven Cappuccio grabs Officer Daniel Hodges mask (United States Attorney for the District of Columbia)

Cappuccio appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit, having been committed into custody following his conviction earlier this year. Earlier in the day, Cappuccio's co-defendant, Trump appointee Federico Klein, was sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison for taking part in assaults on officers in the lower west tunnel.

More than 1,100 defendants have been arrested in connection with the Capitol attack, and more than 400 have been sentenced to periods of incarceration.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com