Riverside man pleads guilty to entering the Capitol on Jan. 6 after coworker recognizes him in coverage

A Riverside man pleaded guilty Wednesday to taking part in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol after a coworker spotted him in news coverage and turned him in.

Andrew Alan Hernandez, 45, pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting in the obstruction of an official proceeding. He was arrested on Feb. 25.

According to a statement of facts from the FBI, a manager who works at Hernandez's former employer reported he got a complaint that Hernandez had participated in the Capitol riots. The coworker had recognized Hernandez because he was wearing a shirt and hat with the company's logo in a picture that was on the cover of the New York Times Magazine.

With that identification, investigators were able to find Hernandez in several images taken of the Capitol riot. Hernandez attended the rally on the Ellipse that ultimately marched to the Capitol. He wore a backpack and a U.S. flag on a pole with a camera attached as he joined a mob that pushed down the barricades and flooded the Capitol, eventually ending up in the Senate Gallery where he took a few selfies of himself, federal prosecutors said.

Hernandez was inside the Capitol for less than half an hour, according to the Department of Justice. The manager told the FBI that Hernandez was subsequently terminated for misrepresenting the company in illegal activities.

When he is sentenced on Jan. 27, 2023, Hernandez faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and potential financial penalties.