>getting two felonies for telling people to take down Facebook posts seems kind of wild.

Well, that, and: >After Hiles was charged in mid-January 2021, the indictment alleges, the two men spoke on the phone for 23 minutes. Afterward, Riley told Hiles he would give him a tour of the Capitol next time.

That's a pretty long "single lapse of judgement", especially when your messages makes it clear he thinks investigators might be interested in the incriminating parts of the social media post.

I can sorta buy that the cop was "duped", it's pretty easy for these people to play the victim to a sympathetic ear, but even if he was, it appears obvious the intent was to obstruct justice. A best case is he attempted to obstruct justice for a guy who was playing him.