Greg Rubenacker of New York was arrested Tuesday after the FBI said he shared videos on the social media platform Snapchat that showed him smoking marijuana inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
“Smoke out the Capitol, baby,” Mr. Rubenacker allegedly said in one of several clips the FBI cited in a freshly unsealed criminal complaint in U.S. District Court for Washington.
The complaint was filed in D.C. federal court on Jan. 27, along with an order that required details about the case to be kept under seal until after Mr. Rubenacker had been arrested.
Public court filings did not list a lawyer Tuesday for Mr. Rubenacker who could not be reached for comment. Local news reports described the defendant as a 25-year-old DJ from Long Island.
In a statement of facts entered in federal court, an FBI task force officer said that federal investigators became aware of Mr. Rubenacker after being contacted by a tipster on Jan. 11.
“The witness stated that Snapchat user RUBENACKER had sent multiple Snapchat videos to the witness from inside the Capitol building,” the officer wrote. “RUBENACKER then posted some of those videos merged together in a ’story’ that other Snapchat users could see, including the witness,” who in turn shared that footage with the FBI and confirmed it depicted the defendant, the officer added.
Also contained in the court filing is a descriptive play-by-play of the Snapchat videos, along with still images from the clips showing a person the FBI alleges to be Mr. Rubenacker.
Describing the footage, the FBI officer said that Mr. Rubenacker was depicted “smoking what appears to be a blue electronic cigarette or other similar vaping device” inside the Capitol Rotund, a hallowed room at the center of the historic complex.
“He inhales from the device and blows out smoke into the Rotunda on a number of occasions. Recording from below and pointing up showing his face and the Rotunda ceiling, RUBENACKER looks into the camera and says, ’America, baby. What a time’,” the officer wrote.
Later in the video, Mr. Rubenacker is shown on camera sitting near a painting in the Capitol “and is smoking what appears to be a marijuana cigarette (or ’joint’),” the FBI officer added, continuing:
“Early on, RUBENACKER looks into the camera and says, ’Smoke out the Capitol, baby.’ RUBENACKER then shows other individuals sitting near him and smoking in the Rotunda with a distinctive statue standing nearby. One of the other individuals then says ’How many joints we have?’ and can be seen counting the people around him smoking, including RUBENACKER who is holding his marijuana cigarette up in the air. RUBENACKER then immediately pans the camera back to himself and says ’Hell yeah,’ as he puts the cigarette back into his mouth, inhales, and exhales smoke into the Capitol Rotunda.”
The complaint alleges Mr. Rubenacker violated laws against knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. He is among more than 180 people facing charges so far in connection with the violent invasion of the Capitol Building last month.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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