VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- A Virginia man will be sentenced in December after pleading guilty to taking part in the riot earlier this year at the U.S. Capitol.
Jacob Hiles pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court in Washington to a misdemeanor count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
Maximum penalties for the count are six months in prison and a fine.
The FBI charged Hiles less than two weeks after the Jan. 6 siege with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, knowingly, with intent to impede government business or official functions, engaging in disorderly conduct on capitol grounds, and parading demonstrating, or picketing in the Capitol buildings, according to court documents.
Multiple photos and videos were posted to a Facebook account in the name Jake Hiles that showed the man later identified as Hiles participating in the unlawful riot, according to court documents.
The photos and videos include "selfies" with some including geo-tags identifying the location of the post as “Capitol Hill” or “United States Capitol,” court documents say.
The photos and videos show a person, who the FBI has identified as Hiles, wearing a 'F*** Antifa' sweatshirt on. The FBI interviewed a witness who says they have known Hiles for over five years, according to court documents.
On January 6, court documents say one of the pictures posted on Facebook was captioned, “Feelin cute…might start a revolution later, IDK – in Capitol Hill.”
According to a post to the Facebook account, Hiles was tear gassed for an hour, then entered the U.S. Capitol Building, then followed a trail of blood as he exited the U.S. Capitol Building.
An attorney for the longtime Virginia Beach charter boat captain told The Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk that he "wanted to accept responsibility and put this behind him.”
The riots, carried out by Trump supporters as Congress took steps to certify president-elect Joe Biden's win in the 2020 general election, left five people dead, including a Capitol police officer.
