Two Virginia police officers are charged after taking a selfie during Capitol riot and 'boasting they were "f***ing proud" of it on Facebook'

Two Virginia police officers have been arrested after taking a selfie during the Capitol riot and then allegedly boasting about their actions on Facebook. 

Thomas Robertson and Jacob Fracker, of the Rocky Mount Police Department, were charged Wednesday with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

They had already been placed on leave after going to the deadly riot and posing in front of a statue of John Stark, a general during the American Revolution. 

In a screenshot of a Facebook post that was circulating on social media, Robertson allegedly wrote, 'CNN and the Left are just mad because we actually attacked the government who is the problem and not some random small business.

'The right IN ONE DAY took the f***ing U.S. Capitol. Keep poking us.' 

Sgt Robertson had told The Roanoke Times that he and officer Fracker, who were both off-duty, did nothing illegal in Washington on January 6, when a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed into the Capitol after Trump repeated bogus claims of election fraud at a rally near the White House.

The Army veteran is said to have posted he was 'f***ing PROUD' of the selfie. 

Thomas Robertson and Jacob Fracker, of the Rocky Mount Police Department, were charged Wednesday with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds

Fracker in a now deleted post is said to have written: 'Lol to anyone who's possibly concerned about the picture of me going around... Sorry I hate freedom? Sorry I fought hard for it and lost friends for it? 

'Not like I did anything illegal, WAY too much to lose to go there but, ya'll do what you feel you need to lol.

'I can protest for what I believe in and still support your protest fro what you believe in. Just saying..after all, I fought for the right to do it…'

Five people were killed, including a Capitol Police officer and a Trump supporter.

Army vet Robertson is said to have posted he was 'f***ing PROUD' of the selfie

Fracker in a now deleted post is said to have written: 'Lol to anyone who's possibly concerned about the picture of me going around... Sorry I hate freedom?'

Robertson said he does not support the violence that happened inside the Capitol. 'Absolutely not,' he said. 'For it to go like that is absolutely ridiculous.'

Robertson said he and Fracker went into the building at about 2 p.m. or 3 p.m.

'We were escorted in by the Capitol Police, shown around and told, `As long as you stay here, you´re fine.´' They stayed in cordoned areas, he said.

Robertson said he and Fracker were not aware at the time that the rally had turned violent.

'The Capitol building is as big as our town,' he said. 'Where I was at there was no violence. There was no fighting with police officers. The door was wide open and police officers were actually handing bottles of water out to people that came in.'

Robertson, pictured on the day said he and Fracker went into the building at about 2 or 3pm

Riot police push back a crowd of supporters of US President Donald Trump after they stormed the Capitol building on January 6

Supporters loyal to President Donald Trump clash with authorities before successfully breaching the Capitol building during a riot on the grounds last Wednesday

He told ABC13: 'There was absolutely no indication that we were anything but welcome to check out certain places. We did not participate in any violence or property damage.' 

On Sunday, the Rocky Mount Police Department said it notified federal authorities that two of its off-duty officers were present at an 'event' in Washington on January 6.

'The Town of Rocky Mount fully supports all lawful expressions of freedom of speech and assembly by its employees but does not condone the unlawful acts that occurred that day,' a town statement said.  

They said Wednesday: 'Two Rocky Mount Police Department officers were charged by federal authorities with misdemeanors stemming from their presence at an event in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021.

'The Town’s review of this matter is ongoing and the officers remain on administrative leave.' 

Two officers with the Capitol Police have been suspended, a congressman said on Monday, as it emerged a total of 17 Capitol Police officers are being investigated.

One was suspended for taking a selfie with a rioter. Another was suspended for putting on a MAGA hat and acting as a 'guide' for rioters around the Capitol. 

The selfie moment was captured by journalist Timothy Burke, and posted to Twitter in a tweet now retweeted 233,000 times, and 'liked' 220,000 times. 

News of their suspension was confirmed by Tim Ryan, an Ohio representative who chairs a House panel probing last week's events. 

Ryan had said an officer had been arrested but a spokesperson for the congressman later said that was not the case.  Ryan also said interim Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman is taking 'aggressive action' to see if there was any internal 'help' by officers in the Capitol chaos. 

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A Capitol Police officer who posed for a selfie with a rioter has been suspended

Instead of repelling the intruders from the building, the officer hung out with them

'I know there were two people suspended,' he said on Monday, in a press conference giving an update on progress in his inquiry. 

'One was the selfie officer and another was an officer who put a MAGA hat on and started directing some people around.'

Neither officer has been named. 

A photograph taken by @Report4America's Chris Jones showed a Capitol Police officer in a MAGA hat, holding a megaphone and addressing the mob.

Jones reported that the officer put on the hat in an attempt to get the attention of the rioters, and distract the crowd surging toward an open door of the building.

As the officer waded into the frenzied group, he became surrounded, giving other police officers the chance to shut the doors behind him, Jones told Military.com.

The actions of some of the officers during the insurrection sparked fury, with Joe Biden among those noting that if the rioters had been with Black Lives Matter they would have received very different treatment.

The chief of the Capitol Police resigned after the building was invaded for the first time since 1814, and the Sergeants-at-Arms of both the House and Senate were forced to quit. 

Others have been praised for their actions, including Eugene Goodman, who averted a possible disaster by distracting the frenzied mob and provoking them to follow him away from the unlocked Senate chamber door.

In a different incident from the riot, Capitol cop Eugene Goodman is seen running away from the mob, leading them from the Senate. He is being hailed as a hero 

One member of the Capitol Police, Brian Sicknick, 42, died on Thursday after he was hit with a fire extinguisher during the riot.

The family of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick released a heartbreaking statement remembering him as a 'lovely, humble soul' on Monday

Another who was on duty on Wednesday, Howard Liebengood, died by suicide on Saturday.

Four rioters died - one Californian woman, Ashli Babbitt, shot dead by Capitol Police; and three others who died during medical emergencies. 

'You can peacefully protest, you can have your opinion, you can scream from the rooftop about your opinion, but you can't impede the process, the constitutional process that we have been following in this country for over 200 years,' Ryan said. 

'They were illegal acts and those people should have been immediately arrested.'

He condemned Donald Trump for his unwillingness to concede and for continuing to claim that the election was fraudulent. 

He also questioned security at the Capitol.

The mob overran the Capitol Police shortly after Trump urged them to 'fight' on his behalf

Prosecutors say charges are just beginning amid a massive operation to punish those involved

Doug Jensen from Iowa, in a QAnon hoodie, was arrested on Saturday after his role in the riots

'There were clearly enormous strategic and planning failures by the Capitol police, by the Sergeant At Arms, and anybody else who was a part of coordinating this effort,' he said.

'I think it's pretty clear that 

'They were illegal acts and those people should have been immediately arrested,' said Ryan.

He went on to condemn President Trump for his unwillingness to concede and continuous claims that the election was fraudulent. He also questioned security at the Capitol.

'There were clearly enormous strategic and planning failures by the Capitol police, by the Sergeant At Arms, and anybody else who was a part of coordinating this effort,' he said.

'I think it's pretty clear that there's going to be a number of people without employment very very soon.'

THE RIOTERS AND THEIR CHARGES SO FAR

Hundreds remain unaccounted for and not everyone who has been arrested has been named. 

Hundreds remain unaccounted for and not everyone who has been arrested has been named. Hundreds remain unaccounted for and not everyone who has been arrested has been named. 

These are some of the most prominent who have been named and shamed.   

These are some of the most prominent who have been named and shamed.   These are some of the most prominent who have been named and shamed.  

Richard Barnett, 60

 

Charged for breaking into Pelosi's office. The self-proclaimed White Nationalist boasted about it afterwards. 

He even left a threatening note on Pelosi's desk which read 'we will not back down'. 

Barnett, 60, left the Capitol unstopped. He was eventually arrested in Little Rock, Arkansas, where he is from. 

Jake Angeli Chansley aka QAnon Shaman, 33

Jacob Angeli Chansley was arrested on Saturday in connection with the riot. 

He was one of the stand-outs from the insurrection because of his outlandish outfit. 

He has been charged with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. 

Adam Johnson, 36

 

Adam Johnson, 36, was arrested by federal marshals in Florida on Friday and is currently being held at the Pinellas County Jail, according to arrest records.

Lonnie Coffman, 70

Charged with possession of an unregistered firearm and carrying without a license. 

He had 11 Molotov cocktails in his truck, two handguns, and an M4 Carbine assault rifle.

Bradley Rukstales, 52 

CEO of a Illinois-based data analytics firm. Rukstales has been charged with entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct.

He said entering the Capitol was the worst decision of his life, and has been fired from his job.

 

Mark Leffingwell  - Entering a restricted building, punching a cop

Christopher Alberts - Carrying a 9mm gun 

Joshua Pruitt- Entering restricted building

Matthew Council - entering restricted building, disorderly conduct

Cindy Fitchett - entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct, violent entry

Michael Curzio - entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct

Douglas Sweet - entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct 

Terry Brown - entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct

Thomas Gallagher - entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct

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