SCRANTON — Frank Scavo, the man who organized 200 local residents to journey to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, to take part in what they hoped would be a peaceful protest against the election certification in Congress, pleaded guilty Wednesday to one charge, a low level misdemeanor, that carried a maximum prison sentence of six months.
Attorney Ernie Preate Jr., counsel for Scavo, said the plea was entered during a 20-minute ZOOM hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth.
Preate said the judge will impose his sentence on Nov, 22, following a pre-sentencing investigation to be conducted by the U.S. Probation Office.
“Mr. Scavo pleaded guilty to unlawfully entering a federal building and remaining in there,” Preate said. “Mr. Scavo told the judge that he regretted what he had done and the judge said he appreciated that statement. There were no problems, no animosities during the proceeding.”
In March, Scavo, who organized 200 local residents to journey by bus to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, was charged in federal court.
Scavo, 58, a former Old Forge School Board member, appeared before Chief Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick of the Middle District of Pennsylvania in federal court in Scranton for a hearing in which he was charged with four misdemeanors stemming from the insurrection at the Capitol Building.
Scavo was charged with:
• Knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority.
• Disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.
• Violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
• Parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.
At that hearing, Preate assured the court that Scavo would continue to cooperate and he noted that Scavo has no prior criminal record.
In an interview with the Times Leader a few days after the rioting, Scavo told this newspaper and other media outlets he was not in the building. Media photographs suggested otherwise.
Two Getty Images photos appear to show Republican Scavo — complete with his unmistakably parted silver hair and an “End the Rain Tax” mask — among a crowd filled with Trump hats and flags inside the Capitol on Jan. 6. In one image, Scavo is holding his cell phone aloft to take a photo.
But Scavo said two days after a violent mob invaded the building, that he was not inside the Capitol at the time.
“We stayed about 15-20 minutes and I took some photos. We received a text from the D.C. mayor that a curfew would begin at 6 p.m. We decided to round up our people to return to the buses and leave,” Scavo told the Times Leader.
“We didn’t see what was going on inside the Capitol.”
At that time, Scavo said he helped organize the trip that had four buses filled with supporters of President Donald Trump who wanted to see the presidential election overturned.
Scavo said the group was not looking for confrontation, but he added that he expected the protesters would be harassed, and he was hopeful that there would be protection provided.
“This is America,” he said. “Why can’t we take a bus ride down to our nation’s capital to witness history and be a part of this without incident.”