2 former Virginia police officers plead not guilty in connection with Capitol riots
Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson, both of whom worked for the Rocky Mount Police Department, are facing charges
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Two former Virginia police officers, who have been charged in connection with the Capitol insurrectionist riot, both plead not guilty before a federal judge in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.
Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson, both of whom worked for the Rocky Mount Police Department, are facing charges of 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.
Defense counsels for both men, who appeared virtually, entered the pleas before Magistrate Judge Robin Meriweather.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}‘STOP THE STEAL’ SPEAKER SEEN ON VIDEO IN CAPITOL RIOTS ARRESTED
The employment of both Fracker and Robertson was terminated on January 26.
Fracker was a K-9 unit officer who has worked for the department since 2017. Robertson was his platoon sergeant.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The actions of the two have driven our beautiful town into the national spotlight in ways that do not reflect our whole community and the people who call Rocky Mount home," according to a statement from the Town of Rocky Mount.
Prior to their firings, Fracker and Robertson had been placed on administrative leave.
Police officers Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson took a selfie inside the U.S. Capitol during an insurrection. Fracker is a member of the National Guard, the Army said Friday. (U.S. DISTRICT COURT)
The Rocky Mount Police Department first notified federal authorities about the officers' presence at the Capitol on Jan. 6, the Town of Rocky Mount said in its own statement.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Both Fracker and Robertson, who are military veterans, were arrested in Virginia on Jan. 12.
On the same day that a group of rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Fracker and Robertson were photographed inside the building in front of a statue of John Stark, according to prosecutors.
Fracker is seen making an obscene gesture as Robertson points to Fracker while holding a wooden rod he later identified as an American flag pole.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stark served in the British Army during the French and Indian war, as well as the Continental Army in the American Revolution.
A New Hampshire native, he coined the state’s motto: "Live free or die."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In a statement to The Roanoke Times, Fracker previously defended his actions at the Capitol as an "expression of grief against what very many Americans would consider tyranny."
"My entire adult life has been dedicated to protecting my fellow Americans. I’ve never once cared about skin color, religion, political views, sexual orientation or anything. Americans are Americans, we bleed the same," he wrote. "I have fought against terrorists who threatened our way of life. I’ve put away drug dealers who would have seen to our children getting addicted to their product just so they could make a buck."