Arbuckle woman pleads not guilty to storming Capitol

An Arbuckle woman accused of participating in the siege of the Capitol Building in January has pleaded not guilty.

Valerie Ehrke virtually appeared before U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman earlier this month for an arraignment hearing in which she pleaded not guilty to knowingly entering and remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, engaging in disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, engaging in violent and disorderly conduct in a Capitol Building, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol Building.

According to court documents, an anonymous caller provided information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation that Ehrke had posted on her Facebook page videos of herself inside the U.S. Capitol Building during the siege on Jan. 6.

Investigators also discovered, according to court documents, that

Ehrke had departed Sacramento International Airport on Jan. 5 and flew to Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia – right next to the border of Washington,

D.C. She made a return trip to Sacramento on

Jan. 9.

Based on information obtained during an interview with Ehrke and the video evidence found on Facebook, an affidavit was submitted to show probable cause that Ehrke

was guilty of violating 18 U.S.C. Section 1752 (a)(1) and (2). She was arrested and charged on Jan. 19.

Ehrke’s next hearing is scheduled for May 11 at 12 p.m.

She remains out of custody on personal recognizance with consent

to appear by video.

To date, more than

300 individuals have been arrested on charges related to their suspected participation in the siege and each case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.