Olympic swimmer Klete Keller faces a spate of new charges for his alleged role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the United States Capitol after a federal grand jury returned a new indictment Wednesday.
Keller was arrested in January on three charges by the FBI: disorderly conduct, violent entry and obstructing law enforcement. If convicted, the charges carried a possible sentence of up to 15 years in prison. Keller appeared before a court virtually in Colorado last month and released on a personal recognizance bond.
The case was referred to a grand jury to investigate if further charges were deemed appropriate. That’s been a common occurrence in prosecution of individuals participating in the insurrection, which sought to stop the certification of the election of Joe Biden as president and which led to the second impeachment of outgoing president Donald Trump on charges of incitement.
Wednesday’s indictment returned seven counts. Among them, per the Washington Post, are “civil disorder, obstructing an official proceeding, entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct in a restricted building.” The charges carry a sentence of up to 30 years, which could increase if Keller’s actions are judged to have contributed to any injuries in the riot. (Five deaths have been linked to the insurrection.)
Keller, a three-time Olympian, is a five-time Olympic medalist. He won gold medals in the 800 free relays at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics and silver in the race at the 2000 Games. Keller was also the bronze medalist in the 400 free at the Sydney and Athens Games.
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