Iowa woman pleads guilty to Capitol insurrection charge

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 56-year-old Iowa woman who joined her son at the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol has pleaded guilty to a charge of entering a restricted building.

Deborah Sandoval, of Des Moines, was scheduled to stand trial Wednesday in Washington, D.C., but instead pleaded guilty to the charge of entering the Capitol. A trial went ahead for her son, Salvador Sandoval Jr., of Ankeny, who is charged with entering the Capitol and assaulting police officers.

Prosecutors dropped other charges against Deborah Sandoval as part of her plea agreement, which recommends a sentence between probation and six months in prison.

Court documents included texts Deborah Sandoval sent in December 2021 in which she said she would travel to Washington. She said, “we will be forced into civil war,” claiming that “China has infiltrated our government thru Biden and they are waiting to attack.”