Michelle Estey, a 54-year-old Newport Beach resident, and 57-year-old Tustin resident Melanie Belger were arrested in Orange in September of 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
They were arraigned on Tuesday, Aug. 22, and each pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. Court records indicate they pleaded guilty as part of a plea agreement. They initially faced three more counts: entering a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building.
Belger and Estey’s legal teams have not yet agreed to a specific amount of jail time or a financial penalty as part of their plea agreement. The maximum sentence they could face is up to six months in prison and a fine as heavy as $5,000.
Other defendants in cases related to the events of Jan. 6 have received light sentences or supervised releases.
According to an FBI affidavit filed Sept. 16, 2022, Estey was turned in after she revealed her actions at the Capitol to a group of friends at dinner. Belger was turned in with evidence of Facebook posts in which she admitted to being inside the Capitol.
The FBI special agent investigating the case found that Estey and Belger were shown in a YouTube video titled “D.C. Burning — Jan. 6 Riots” that detailed much of the chaos that day. Estey’s identity was confirmed by a longtime friend, and Belger’s was confirmed by a coworker.
The FBI agent said Estey and Belger had to climb through a broken window to get inside a room in the Capitol with other rioters.
Estey and Belger are due back in court for a sentencing hearing on Dec. 4.
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