A Buffalo man has been sentenced to 50 months in prison for forcibly removing the badge and radio of a Washington, D.C. police officer during the chaotic events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. The severity of Thomas Sibick’s actions was emphasized by a federal judge, who stated that he stripped Officer Michael Fanone of “everything that badge represented.” Judge Amy Berman Jackson recognized the badge as a “symbol of (Fanone’s) service to the city and his country.” During Sibick’s sentencing hearing, Fanone urged Judge Jackson to impose a prison term on Sibick, dismissing Sibick’s pleas for remorse and branding him a “coward and a liar.”
Fanone, who retired 11 months after the assault at the Capitol, endured being dragged, beaten, and electroshocked by the rioters on that fateful day. He emphasized the significance of the police radio that Sibick had taken from him, describing it as his lifeline and his only means of calling for help during those harrowing moments. Fanone expressed his disappointment as it was taken as a trophy by Sibick.
Sibick had requested leniency, citing the impact of a prescription drug he had taken on the day of the Capitol riot. However, Judge Jackson rebuked Sibick’s claim of trying to help and rejected the notion that Sibick was merely caught up in the crowd. She stated that Sibick had fully embraced the mob mentality and bought into it completely. As part of his guilty plea, Sibick admitted to burying the police badge in his backyard, while the $5,500 police radio was never recovered.
During the hearing, Sibick repeatedly turned to face Fanone and pleaded for forgiveness, acknowledging Fanone’s bravery and service on that day. Fanone left the courtroom before the sentencing hearing concluded. Sibick spent seven months in pretrial detention in the Washington, D.C. jail with other January 6 defendants, describing an atmosphere of authoritarianism in the jail’s wing dedicated to those involved in the Capitol events. He expressed criticism and belittlement for appearing weak and not subscribing to certain ideologies, while others sought fame, fortune, and notoriety.
Sibick pleaded guilty to assaulting, resisting, and impeding a police officer in March, with Judge Jackson describing the forcible removal of Fanone’s radio as a choice and an act of participation in the Capitol attack. According to a Justice Department report, a significant number of the over 1,000 U.S. Capitol riot defendants have pleaded guilty. The Justice Department had sought a prison sentence of nearly six years for Sibick. In addition to the 50-month prison term, Judge Jackson ordered Sibick to pay $2,000 towards the damage incurred at the Capitol complex.
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