Wisconsin National Guard soldier, friend charged in Capitol attack

MADISON, Wis. — A Wisconsin Army National Guard member and his friend have been charged with entering the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack.

Abram Markofski and Brandon Nelson have been charged with four counts including entering and remaining in a restricted building and disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, federal prosecutors announced Monday.

Markofski joined the Guard in 2019 and is currently a private first-class in the 1st Battalion, 128th Infantry, Guard spokesman Joe Trovato said. He declined further comment, saying he couldn’t discuss “personnel matters.”

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By Kyle Rempfer and Stephen Losey

An FBI affidavit said Nelson told agents that he and Markofski drove to Washington to see President Donald Trump’s political rally. Both admitted they entered the Capitol, the affidavit said.

The men made their initial court appearance in Madison on Monday afternoon. U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Crocker released them pending a virtual hearing on May 10 and barred them from entering the District of Columbia.

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More than 400 Trump supporters have been charged in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 in hopes of blocking certification of Joe Biden’s presidential victory, including members of far-right extremist groups. Nelson and Markofski are at least the fourth and fifth Wisconsin residents charged.

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