Jacob Fracker, a member of the Virginia National Guard is the first person currently serving in the US military to be charged for participating in the siege at the US Capitol last Wednesday.
Fracker, a current infantryman in the Virginia National Guard, who previously served as a marine, according to Military.com has been charged with knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
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“The Virginia National Guard will conduct an investigation into the matter, and we will be able to release more information when that is complete,” A.A “Cotton” Puryear the spokesperson for the state’s Guard said. Fracker was not among the hundreds of Virginia guard troops activated to beef up security in Washington ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration next week.
Fracker who serves as a police officer at the Rocky Mount Police Department in his civilian life was one of two officers from Virginia to be charged in connection to the January 6 insurrection on Capitol Hill.
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Fracker and the other officer Thomas Robertson have been placed on leave according to the Rocky Mount PD.
Robertson is an Army veteran who was injured in a mortar blast while deployed to Afghanistan, according to Franklin-News Post. He was charged with the same crimes as Fracker.
Both men were photographed inside the Capitol raising their middle fingers in front of the John Stark statute.
The photo was then posted on social media—where Robertson defended their actions and said he was “fucking proud” because he was “willing to put skin in the game,” according to a criminal complaint.
“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 fucking U.S. Capitol. Keep poking us,” Roberson wrote.
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In a separate Facebook post Fracker said “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,” he wrote. “I can protest for what I believe in and still support your protest fro [sic] what you believe in. Just saying..after all, I fought for the right to do it…”
Fracker and Robertson are the newest addition to a growing list of people with military ties who’ve been questioned or charged following the Capitol riots.
