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North Texas man arrested after Facebook posts, video connect him to Jan. 6 Capitol attack, court docs say

Jacob Garcia was arrested in Fort Worth after images and videos from his Facebook page were cross-referenced with Capitol CCTV footage, according to FBI documents.

FORT WORTH, Texas — A Burleson man was arrested in Fort Worth on March 18 in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot after an investigation linked him to it through Facebook posts, authorities said.

According to legal documents obtained by WFAA, the FBI office in Dallas received information from the Burleson Police Department about a Facebook account belonging to Burleson resident Jacob Garcia posting about entering the Capitol on Jan. 6.

FBI officials investigated Garcia's Facebook page and discovered posts dating back to December 2020 where he mentioned a need to “rise up” and telling D.C. to “get ready.”

The legal documents also state that the IP address locations associated with Garcia's Facebook posts from January 6 indicated they were made from Washington, D.C. 

GoPro video footage from Garcia's Facebook account – cross-referenced with Capitol CCTV video – also placed him at the scene of the riot, the documents said. Those videos showed Garcia unlawfully entering the Capitol building by climbing the exterior walls at about 2:17 p.m. and leaving over an hour later at 3:40 p.m.

FBI officials obtained the driver's license photo for Garcia and matched it to the man seen in the images and video posted by the Facebook account in question. 

The FBI also interviewed a Facebook and childhood friend of Garcia's in October 2021, who also positively identified Garcia as the man seen in the Capitol footage and in the pulled driver's license photo.

The complaint was filed on Mar. 7. A warrant was issued for Garcia’s arrest, and he was arrested on Mar. 18. 

Garcia has been charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

Garcia's arrest comes after another North Texas man, Guy Reffitt, the first person to stand trial for their actions during the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, was found guilty on all charges after a week-long trial. 

To date, 38 people have been arrested from North Texas in the Capitol Riot, the most by any FBI field office in the country, officials have said.

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