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Jorge Riley, former Sacramento Republican leader arrested after involvement in U.S. Capitol siege

Sacramento-area woman seen on social media inside Capitol also arrested, court document shows

Jorge Riley, former Sacramento Republican leader arrested after involvement in U.S. Capitol siege

Sacramento-area woman seen on social media inside Capitol also arrested, court document shows

ANOTHER HAS BEEN BOOKED INTO JAIL OF FELONY CHARGES. GULSTAN: TO THE LATEST ON THE CRISIS AT THE U.S. CAPITOL, TWO PEOPLE FROM OUR AREA HAVE BEEN ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH THE RIOTS ON JANUARY 6. LAW ENFORCEMENT SOURCE CONFIRMED JORGE RILEY IS NOW UNDER ARREST, HIS CASE IS UNDER SEAL, AND THE U.S. ATTORNEY’S OFFICE IS NOT COMMENTING ON THE CASE. BUT WE DO KNOW THAT RILEY WAS THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE SACRAMENTO REPUBLICAN ASSEMBLY, WHICH IS AN ACTIVIST GROUP. HE HAD BEEN FORCED TO RESIGN AFTER BACKLASH OVER HIS INVOLVEMENT IN THE RIO KCRA 3 INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER BRITTANY JOHNSON JOINS US NO WITH INFORMATION ON THAT SECOND PERSON ARRESTED. BRITTANY BRITTANY: HER NAME IS VALERIE ELAINE EHRKE, AND SHE APPEARED BY ZOOM IN A FEDERAL SACRAMENTO COURTROOM THIS AFTERNOON. SHE DIDN’T SAY MUCH DURING HER COURT APPEARANCE. BUT WHEN THE JUDGE ASKED HER IF SHE HAD PLANNED TO ATTEND SOME SCHEDULED DEMONSTRATIONS FOR TOMORROW AT THE CALIFORNIA STATE CAPITOL, SHE RESPONDED WITH THE FOLLOWING WORDS. ABSOLUTELY NOT. FEDERAL LAW PREVENTS US FROM RECORDING THE HEARING. BUT WE WANT TO PASS ALONG A RECAP. A FEDERAL JUDGE RESTRICTED VALERIE ELAINE EHRKE TO LOCA TRAVEL, THE AREA COVERED BY EASTERN DISTRICT FEDERAL COURT. SHE IS NOT ALLOWED TO BOARD AIRPLANE. EHRKE IS NOT ALLOWED TO GO TO CALIFORNIA’S STATE CAPITOL, A SHE WAS ALLEGEDLY PART OF THE CREW THAT BROKE INTO THE U.S. CAPITOL, ACCORDING TO THE JUDG WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, EHRKE WILL BE PROCESSED BY THE MARSHALS OFFIC THE JUDGE ALSO SAID HE CANNOT TAKE AWAY EHRKE’S FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT, BUT STRONGLY CAUTIONED AGAINST ANY USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA WHILE THIS CASE IS GOING ON. SO HOW DID WE GET HERE? ACCORDING TO AN FBI AFFIDAVIT, AGENTS WERE MADE AWARE OF A VIDEO POSTED TO A FACEBOOK PAGE WITH THE NAME VALERIE ELAINE EHRKE. THE VIDEO SHOWED A GROUP OF PEOPLE ENTERING THE U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING WITH A CAPTION READING, QUOTE, WE MADE IT INSIDE, RIGHT BEFORE THEY SHOVED US ALL OUT. I TOOK OFF WHEN I FELT PEPPER SPRAY IN MY THROAT. LOL. HERE’S A SCREENSHOT FROM TH VIDEO, WHICH IS ALSO INCLUDED IN THE AFFIDAVIT. ANOTHER VIDEO, AGAIN FROM THE FIRST-PERSON PERSPECTIVE, SHOWS PEOPLE WALKING THROUGH AN AREA, WHICH THE FBI BELIEVES TO BE IN THE STREETS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. THE CAPTION TO THE VIDEO READS, QUOTE, B SQUAD GETTING IT, ON THE WAY TO THE BREACHED CAPITOL BUILDING. A SCREENSHOT OF THAT VIDEO IS ON YOUR TV SCREEN RIGHT NOW, AND IT’S ALSO IN THE AFFIDAVIT. EHRKE IS FACING A LONG LIST JUDGES FOR THIS CASE. KCRA 3 INVESTIGATES DID UNCOVER A CRIMINAL HISTORY F EHRKE DATING BACK TO 1992. HER NEXT COURT HEARING IS SCHEDULED FOR MONDAY
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Jorge Riley, former Sacramento Republican leader arrested after involvement in U.S. Capitol siege

Sacramento-area woman seen on social media inside Capitol also arrested, court document shows

Jorge Riley, a former Sacramento Republican leader who was forced to resign after his participation in a pro-Trump riot that stormed the U.S. Capitol has now been arrested, law enforcement sources close to KCRA 3 confirmed Tuesday. Riley, who posted photos on his personal Facebook page documenting his attendance, resigned from his positions as the corresponding secretary of the California Republican Assembly and president of the Sacramento Republican Assembly Thursday.Riley faces up to 20 years in prison and made his first appearance before a federal judge on Wednesday.He is charged with two misdemeanor charges and one Class B felony, which falls under obstruction of Congress. All charges stem from posts on his Facebook page, according to the FBI.The government says that Riley is a flight risk and danger to the community given his actions, and should remain in jail. The judge will hear arguments regarding his detention on Monday.The California Republican Assembly issued a press release condemning Riley’s actions and said the CRA was not involved in the incident.“Specifically, we denounce the lawlessness that took place at our nation’s capital on Jan. 6, 2021. The perpetrators should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. CRA was not involved with the event and any participation by individual CRA members was in their capacity as private citizens,” the statement read.The statement also said the CRA president demanded Riley resign his membership immediately or be removed.KCRA 3 reviewed photos, videos and comments posted to Riley’s Facebook page during and after the riot, including a since-deleted Jan. 8 post that read “You will all die.”In a series of photos and videos, he is seen participating in the rally with President Trump, before moving with the group to the Capitol. As the photos continue, Riley is seen with the group storming the Capitol building. The account also shared photos of broken windows inside the Capitol hallways and outside Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. Photos of Riley inside the Capitol were later removed from the page. Also arrested in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot was Sacramento-area woman Valerie Elaine Ehrke, who also posted pictures of herself inside the Capitol building on Facebook, according to an affidavit obtained by KCRA 3.The document said an anonymous caller informed the FBI that one of their relatives saw Ehrke, who is from Arbuckle, inside the building. A public Facebook page with Ehrke's name had a video posted Jan. 6 at 2:09 p.m. of people entering the building with a caption reading, "We made it inside, right before they shoved us all out. I took off when I felt pepper spray in my throat! Lol"The screenshot shared in the affidavit also showed Ehrke's profile picture was a flaming Q, commonly associated with the far-right conspiracy group known as QAnon.An FBI database search done on Ehrke revealed she flew from Sacramento International Airport on Jan. 5 and arrived at Reagan National Airport the same day, the affidavit reads. Ehrke confirmed to FBI agents who interviewed her at her workplace that she had traveled at that time."She heard President Trump tell the crowd to go to the U.S. Capitol, and he would go with them. EHRKE instead went back to her hotel room, turned on the television, and saw a news story about how people were going into the U.S. Capitol building. EHRKE decided she wanted to be part of the crowd, and she walked to the U.S. Capitol," the court document reads.

Jorge Riley, a former Sacramento Republican leader who was forced to resign after his participation in a pro-Trump riot that stormed the U.S. Capitol has now been arrested, law enforcement sources close to KCRA 3 confirmed Tuesday.

Riley, who posted photos on his personal Facebook page documenting his attendance, resigned from his positions as the corresponding secretary of the California Republican Assembly and president of the Sacramento Republican Assembly Thursday.

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Riley faces up to 20 years in prison and made his first appearance before a federal judge on Wednesday.

He is charged with two misdemeanor charges and one Class B felony, which falls under obstruction of Congress. All charges stem from posts on his Facebook page, according to the FBI.

The government says that Riley is a flight risk and danger to the community given his actions, and should remain in jail.

The judge will hear arguments regarding his detention on Monday.

The California Republican Assembly issued a press release condemning Riley’s actions and said the CRA was not involved in the incident.

“Specifically, we denounce the lawlessness that took place at our nation’s capital on Jan. 6, 2021. The perpetrators should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. CRA was not involved with the event and any participation by individual CRA members was in their capacity as private citizens,” the statement read.

The statement also said the CRA president demanded Riley resign his membership immediately or be removed.

KCRA 3 reviewed photos, videos and comments posted to Riley’s Facebook page during and after the riot, including a since-deleted Jan. 8 post that read “You will all die.”

In a series of photos and videos, he is seen participating in the rally with President Trump, before moving with the group to the Capitol. As the photos continue, Riley is seen with the group storming the Capitol building. The account also shared photos of broken windows inside the Capitol hallways and outside Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. Photos of Riley inside the Capitol were later removed from the page.

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Also arrested in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot was Sacramento-area woman Valerie Elaine Ehrke, who also posted pictures of herself inside the Capitol building on Facebook, according to an affidavit obtained by KCRA 3.

The document said an anonymous caller informed the FBI that one of their relatives saw Ehrke, who is from Arbuckle, inside the building. A public Facebook page with Ehrke's name had a video posted Jan. 6 at 2:09 p.m. of people entering the building with a caption reading, "We made it inside, right before they shoved us all out. I took off when I felt pepper spray in my throat! Lol"

A Sacramento area woman's Facebook post of her inside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot was screenshot as part of an affidavit leading to her arrest.
Court document obtained by KCRA 3

The screenshot shared in the affidavit also showed Ehrke's profile picture was a flaming Q, commonly associated with the far-right conspiracy group known as QAnon.

An FBI database search done on Ehrke revealed she flew from Sacramento International Airport on Jan. 5 and arrived at Reagan National Airport the same day, the affidavit reads. Ehrke confirmed to FBI agents who interviewed her at her workplace that she had traveled at that time.

"She heard President Trump tell the crowd to go to the U.S. Capitol, and he would go with them. EHRKE instead went back to her hotel room, turned on the television, and saw a news story about how people were going into the U.S. Capitol building. EHRKE decided she wanted to be part of the crowd, and she walked to the U.S. Capitol," the court document reads.