Olympic gold-medal swimmer and Coloradan Klete Keller pleaded guilty Wednesday to a felony charge of obstruction in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
Keller, 38, faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on the charge, according to a plea agreement posted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Keller was indicted in February on seven counts, including obstruction of an official proceeding, disorderly conduct and entering a restricted building, after investigators identified him in video footage of the gathering. The six additional counts against him were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.
On Jan. 6, he wore a jacket with the Olympic patch on the sleeve, and at 6-foot-6-inches, stood a head and shoulder taller than many in the crowd, according to a criminal complaint filed against him. Keller stood with a crowd in the Rotunda and resisted law enforcement’s efforts to remove the crowd, according to the complaint.
In court documents, Keller admitted that he yelled obscenities about Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer during the riot and that he jerked away from officers who tried to corral him. He also admitted to destroying a phone and memory card he used to record video and photos inside the Capitol, and admitted that he threw away the Olympic jacket he’d worn that day.
He is the second Coloradan to plead guilty in connection with the riot, according to a database of defendants maintained by the Program on Extremism at George Washington University. Glen Wes Lee Croy, of Colorado Springs, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge in August.
Nine Colorado residents have been charged with crimes in connection with the Jan. 6 riot, according to the university’s database.
Keller competed in the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. He captured two gold medals and a silver as a member of the 800-meter freestyle relay, and won two bronze medals in the 400 free.
He had been working as a real estate agent in Colorado Springs but left his job in the wake of the January insurrection.
👀OLYMPIAN ARRIVES AT COURT👀
Former gold medal swimmer Klete Keller was not answering my questions as he arrived at US District Court Wednesday to plead guilty in the #CaptiolRiots. Keller is facing 7 criminal counts including obstruction, a felony. @wusa9 @9NEWS @USASwimming pic.twitter.com/AtfspzoBEB— Eric Flack (@EricFlackTV) September 29, 2021
