Jurors on Monday convicted former Rocky Mount Officer Thomas Robertson of all six counts he faced in connection with the Jan. 6 uprising, including charges of interfering with police in the Capitol and entering a restricted area with a large dangerous wooden stick. His sentence was not scheduled immediately. Robertson’s jury trial was the second of hundreds of riots in the Capitol. The first ended last month with jurors convicting a Texas man, Guy Refit, of all five charges in his indictment. Robertson did not testify at his trial, which began on April 5. The jurors discussed for several hours two days before reaching their unanimous verdict. A juror, speaking to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, said as she left the courtroom: “I think the government has made a really exciting case and the evidence has been overwhelming.” Defense attorney Mark Rollins said Robertson would appeal the jury’s verdict. “While Mr. Robertson disagrees with the jury’s decision, he respects the rule of law,” Rollins said in a statement. A key witness for prosecutors in his case was Jacob Fracker, who also served in the Rocky Mount Police Force and regarded Robertson as a mentor and paternal figure. Fracker was scheduled to stand trial with Robertson before pleading guilty last month to conspiracy and agreeing to work with authorities. Fracker testified Thursday that he hoped the mob that attacked the Capitol could overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Robertson was charged with six counts: obstructing Congress, interfering with officers during political unrest, entering a restricted area with a dangerous weapon, disorderly conduct or harassment in a restricted area while carrying a dangerous weapon, disorderly conduct or disorderly conduct. . The latter charge comes from the alleged destruction of cell phones belonging to him and Fracker after the uprising. During the final round of the trial on Friday, Assistant Attorney General Risa Berkower said Robertson went to Washington and went on a “violent vigil” because he believed the election had been rigged by then-President Donald Trump. He used the wooden stick to intervene with the few police officers before joining the crowd that poured into the Capitol, he said. “The accused did all this because he wanted to overthrow the election,” Berkower said. Rollins admitted that Robertson broke the law when he entered the Capitol during the uprising. He encouraged jurors to convict Robertson of misdemeanors, but urged them to acquit Robertson of felony criminal mischief for using the stick as a dangerous weapon and for preventing Congress from certifying voting in the Electoral College. “I had no plans to go down there and say, ‘I’m going to prevent Congress from doing this vote,’” Rollins said. Fracker testified that he initially thought he was simply breaking in when he entered the Capitol building. However, he eventually pleaded guilty to conspiring with Robertson to obstruct Congress. Rocky Mount, about 25 miles south of Roanoke and home to about 5,000 people, fired Robertson and Fracker after the uprising.
