Former Olympic athlete close to plea deal in Jan. 6 attack case

Prosecutors and the defense for a former Olympic athlete are close to reaching a plea deal, multiple news outlets reported.

Klete Keller, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was arrested in mid-January and indicted on seven charges in connection to the Jan. 6 riot, including civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding. 

Former teammates and coaches recognized Keller at the riot after seeing a video posted on social media by a reporter from the conservative news outlet Townhall. In the clip, Keller’s Olympic team jacket with the word “USA” printed on his sleeves could be seen.

According to a criminal complaint filed against Keller, the Olympic patch was also noticeably visible on his jacket.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Jawad told the judge overseeing Keller’s case on Wednesday that the prosecution and defense team were “just finalizing an agreement” over a plea bargain.

Keller has been out on bond pending his case, 9News reported.

Over 500 people have been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 insurrection as people stormed the Capitol to disrupt Congress from conducting the official Electoral College count of the 2020 presidential election results; however, only a few have actually been sentenced, Reuters reported.

Over two dozen defendants have pleaded guilty to charges associated with the incident, but the wire service noted many of those sentences are still pending.

The Hill has reached out to Keller’s lawyer for comment. 

Updated 11:00 p.m.