Former Olympic swimming champion Keller reached a guilty plea deal with prosecutors over his involvement in the congressional riots

Washington, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Klete Keller, a former member of the U.S. swimming team and gold medalist in the men's freestyle relay at the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympics, reached a plea bargain with prosecutors wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for his involvement in the Jan. 6 congressional riots.

Keller, 39, was photographed by the media as having appeared at the scene of the Congressional riots on January 6 this year. According to court documents, Keller stayed inside the Capitol for nearly an hour and tried to stop the actions of law enforcement officers at the scene.

On Jan. 13, Keller was arrested in Colorado on suspicion of involvement in an attack on the Capitol. Prosecutors initially brought him three charges, but later increased the charges to seven, including participation in riots, obstruction of official procedures, obstruction of passage, and vandalism on congressional premises. Keller thus became the first former high-profile athlete to be prosecuted in a congressional riot.

At Wednesday's trial, Keller pleaded guilty to obstructing official proceedings. His lawyer, Edward Mac Mahon, told the judge: "Keller is trying to make up for the terrible mistakes he made and hopes to be able to start his life again." ”

Obstruction of official proceedings is a felony under federal law, and sentences range from 21 to 27 months. In response to the plea deal, prosecutors dropped six additional charges against Keller (including 1 felony and 5 misdemeanors).

In addition to reaching a plea deal on Wednesday, prosecutors have asked the court to delay sentencing Keller because he has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in continuing their investigation into the congressional unrest and may be required to testify in other legal proceedings.

According to statistics, at least 650 people involved in the congressional riots have been prosecuted by prosecutors. By Sept. 21, at least 74 people had been found guilty or had reached plea agreements with prosecutors.