Schiller Park man sentenced, immediately taken into custody for Jan. 6 violence

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A former employee of Argonne National Laboratory has been sentenced for his role in a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

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Schiller Park resident Robin Reierson, who will turn 70 next month, pleaded guilty to "assaulting, resisting or impeding officers" during the Capitol Hill takeover, but had pushed for a no jail time.

Federal prosecutors, who have been emphasizing the need for prison as a public deterrent to such political violence, wanted Reierson to be put away for 26 months.

Reierson was sentenced to 18 months in prison on Wednesday.

The video in the player above is from a previous report.

In an unusual move by authorities, Reierson was immediately taken into custody at the conclusion of his sentencing hearing in Washington, DC.

Typically, defendants are allowed time to put their affairs in order and then then surrender at some future date. That was not the case for Reierson.

His full sentence is a year and a half behind bars, followed by 36 months of supervised release, a $5,000 fine, and $2,000 restitution.

According to the sentencing judge, Reierson must stay away from Capitol grounds while on supervised release unless given special authorization.

Authorities said Reierson "used his back and body to push against a bike rack barrier and into the line of assembled officers."

The conduct quickly resulted in the collapse of a police skirmish line and yielded a breach that allowed an angry mob to push toward the capitol building.

During the melee, security photos show Reierson wearing a protective helmet and cheering on fellow attackers according to investigators-encouraging them "don't stop... keep going!"

As the ABC7 Chicago I-Team first reported, at the time of the riot, Reierson worked as a lead welder at Argonne National Laboratory, a top security facility southwest of Chicago.

A spokesperson for Argonne National Laboratory told the I-Team that Reierson "is no longer employed by the lab" and directed all further questions to the U.S. Attorney's office.

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