FBI searching for Proud Boy after he disappears days before January 6 sentencing
By Mary Kay Mallonee, CNN
(CNN) — The FBI is searching for a member of the Proud Boys who was scheduled to be sentenced in federal court in Washington on Friday but is now missing, according to court records and the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Christopher Worrell, 52, was convicted in a bench trial on seven charges related to his actions during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.
The FBI has released a wanted poster for Worrell saying he “violated conditions of release pending sentencing.”
“Worrell is wanted for violating conditions of release pending sentencing on federal charges related to the violence at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021,” the poster states. “A federal arrest warrant was issued for Worrell in the United States District Court, District of Columbia, Washington, D.C., on August 15, 2023.”
“We are interested in hearing from any members of the public who might have information regarding Mr. Worrell’s whereabouts,” Patty Hartman, a spokesperson for the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, told CNN in a statement.
Worrell’s attorneys declined to comment.
Worrell has been under house arrest in Florida. His case had become a cause célèbre in right-wing circles because of his health issues while in jail and claims that officials had dragged their feet in getting him medical treatment for a broken finger. He is also diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and at one point he contracted Covid-19 while at the jail.
Worrell’s sentencing was canceled on Tuesday and a bench warrant for his arrest was issued, according to court records.
Federal prosecutors were seeking a 14-year sentence for Worrell, according to the government’s sentencing memorandum which was submitted on Sunday.
“Worrell was found guilty, after a bench trial in which he perjured himself, of assaulting a group of police officers with a deadly and dangerous weapon in order to thwart Congress’s certification of the 2020 electoral vote and the peaceful transition of power,” prosecutors wrote in the memorandum.
The FBI asked that anyone with information on Worrell’s whereabouts contact their local FBI office or the nearest American embassy or consulate.
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CNN’s Hannah Rabinowitz and Katelyn Polantz contributed to this story.
