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Port Orchard man pleads guilty to involvement in Jan. 6 insurrection

caption: A flag flies in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
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A flag flies in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

John M. Cameron, who was arrested in January 2022 for his involvement in the attack on the U.S. Capitol, reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors last week and now awaits sentencing.

A man matching John Cameron's description was spotted in surveillance video among the people that broke into the Capitol building. He made his way from the Senate wing to other areas of the building, then eventually climbed out through a broken window and wandered the Capitol grounds.

Court documents say Cameron also posted videos of himself and others in restricted areas of the U.S. Capitol. To build additional proof of his involvement, prosecutors used his Google location data to map out where he was that day.

caption: Google location data from John M. Cameron's mobile phone, documenting his whereabouts on January 6th 2021 at the U.S. Capitol
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Google location data from John M. Cameron's mobile phone, documenting his whereabouts on January 6th 2021 at the U.S. Capitol

Federal prosecutors charged him with four crimes, but have agreed to drop three of them in exchange for Cameron pleading guilty to the fourth: one count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. It's a class B misdemeanor.

He faces up to six months in prison, up to five years probation and a $5,000 fine.

The court has not set a date for his sentencing.

Cameron will also pay $500 to the Architect of the Capitol (a federal agency) as part of restitution for the millions of dollars in damage to the building that day in 2021.

He's among at least 12 people with ties to Washington state charged for involvement in the insurrection. Two of them were just arrested in March.

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