Tuesday, June 2, 2020 | 9:53 a.m.
PHOENIX — An Arizona judge has rejected a plea deal for a man who used a homemade armored vehicle to block a highway bridge near the Hoover Dam in 2018.
Mohave County Judge Billy Sipe called the deal that would have given Matthew Wright less than 10 years in prison too lenient.
Wright, 32, of Henderson, Nevada, pleaded guilty to making a terrorist threat and two other felony crimes as part of a deal in February.
Wright had faced a potential life sentence and Sipe rejected the deal Monday at his sentencing hearing, The Arizona Republic reported.
Wright was arrested in June 2018 and faced multiple charges after blocking traffic by parking his vehicle across lanes on the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Bridge above the Colorado River, prosecutors said.
He surrendered to authorities on the Arizona side of the bridge after a 90-minute barricade situation that halted traffic on the main highway between Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Police discovered two assault-style rifles, two handguns and 900 rounds of ammunition in Wright's vehicle, authorities have said.
Wright in a letter from jail said he was motivated by patriotism, using the phrase “for where we go one, we go all,” at the end of the letter.
The phrase is used on message boards in the QAnon community, authorities said. QAnon conspiracy theories center around a supposed government insider who adherents believe is spooning out vital revelations using cryptic language and signs.
Wright's attorney Michael Denea said his client did not plan to use the weapons in his vehicle, adding that Wright carried out a misguided act of protest and just wanted to distribute literature.
“He at no time intended on engaging law enforcement or anyone else in any act of violence using the weapons in his vehicle,” Denea said.
Deputy county attorney Robert Moon said it was unclear what Wright intended but there was the potential for “great violence.”
Wright declined to make a statement during the hearing, referring to a statement he had filed, which was not immediately available, the Arizona Republic reported.
