Brad Rukstales Wiki – Brad Rukstales Biography
Brad Rukstales, an Illinois businessman who serves as the CEO of a data analytics company, was among those arrested in Washington, D.C. for his role in storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6. The riot prompted evacuations and at least five people, including U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, died amid the melee, Forbes reported.
Rukstales is the president and CEO of Cogensia, a tech company founded in 2002. He is listed as the primary agent in a search of business records on the Illinois Secretary of State website.
According to the company website, the firm provides data analysis services for restaurants and business-to-business clients.
Cogensia has distanced itself from Rukstales since his arrest. The firm released a brief statement on social media:
Our CEO, Brad Rukstales’ participated in the recent Washington DC protests. Those actions were his own and not acting on behalf Cogensia nor do his actions in any way reflect the policies or values of our firm. He has been placed on leave of absence while we assess further.
Rukstales’ bio was removed from Cogensia’s website soon after his arrest. On January 8, the company also stripped the website of articles in which Rukstales was quoted and removed images of him that had been sprinkled throughout the site.
Before Cogensia took down any reference to Rukstales, the site had included a blog post he wrote on December 23 in which he questioned whether Americans could trust leaders or medical professionals on topics including the coronavirus. Variety republished a portion of the blog post:
Information overload can be a problem! We are told to trust the experts. The professionals and doctors not only have conflicting information, but often change their advice. Mask. No Mask. Mask indoors. Cases are important. No, it’s hospitalizations. What age ranges are contagious? Close schools! Vaccines are coming! They work. They don’t work — it’s a conspiracy. AGHHH. In general, it seems that the more information that is provided, the more difficult it is to consume, interpret, and action. We end up having to trust ourselves on topics that we are not experts on!
Rukstales has personally donated nearly $30,000 to support Republican causes since October 2019, according to public records on the Federal Election Commission website. His donations included at least $12,000 to support President Trump’s re-election efforts.
FEC records show Rukstales made regular contributions to WinRed, a political action committee that established to support conservative candidates. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the PAC has raised nearly $2 billion since 2019.
Rukstales specifically donated to the Republican National Committee, the Trump Make America Great Again Committee and Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. He donated $2,250 to Jeanne Ives, who formerly served in the Illinois House of Representatives and lost a bid for a U.S. House seat in the 2020 election. Rukstales also gave $500 to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s re-election campaign.
Brad Rukstales Age
Brad Rukstales’s age is unknown.
Apologizes After Arrest at Capitol Riot
Rukstales has admitted that he entered the Capitol building and has issued an apology for his “poor judgment.” But he also insisted in an interview with CBS Chicago that he was not violent. “I had nothing to do with charging anybody,” Rukstales said. “I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and I regret my part in that.”
As of this writing, it was not yet clear which specific charges Rukstales could face. Federal officials have said those involved in the Capitol riot could face charges including “seditious conspiracy, rioting and insurrection,” Reuters reported.
Rukstales traveled to Washington, D.C. to attend the rally President Trump had promoted for weeks. As the New York Times reported, Trump had encouraged his supporters to protest on January 6 as lawmakers gathered to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college victory. Trump repeatedly made unfounded claims that the election had been stolen from him in the weeks leading up to it and on December 19, he tweeted to supporters that the “big protest in D.C. on January 6th” would “be wild.”
Since his arrest, Rukstales has deleted or scrubbed his social media accounts. But he suggested to CBS Chicago that he hadn’t anticipated violence. “It was great to see a whole bunch of people together in the morning and hear the speeches, but it turned into chaos.”
As of this writing, Rukstales’ Twitter account had only one tweet and it was to apologize for his role at the Capitol riot. Ruckstales downplayed his participation and claimed he had simply followed others into the building because he was curious to “see what was taking place. Here is the full statement:
In a moment of extremely poor judgment following the Jan. 6 rally in Washington, I followed hundreds of others through an open set of doors to the Capitol building to see what was taking place inside. I was arrested for the first time in my life and charged with unlawful entry.
My decision to enter the Capitol was wrong, and I am deeply regretful to have done so. Without qualification and as a peaceful and law-abiding citizen, I condemn the violence and destruction that took place in Washington.
I offer my sincere apologies for my indiscretion, and I deeply regret that my actions have brought embarrassment to my family, colleagues, friends and fellow countrymen.
It was the single worst personal decision of my life; I have no excuse for my actions and wish that I could take them back.
Rukstales was arrested on January 6, WGN-TV reported, but it was not immediately clear where he was detained. His name does not come up in an online search of recent inmate records for Washington, D.C. or Virginia, and he was not listed in the federal inmate system. Rukstales case hasd also not been entered in a database of federal court cases as of this writing.
Rukstales was not detained for very long. He was back home in Inverness, a suburb of Chicago, on January 7. CBS Chicago reporter Charlie De Mar briefly spoke with Rukstales outside of his home. Rukstales expressed regret for being there and insisted he had not acted violently. But when the reporter asked why he had chosen to go inside the Capitol, Rukstales ended the interview.
Rukstales noted in his apology statement that he was arrested for unlawful entry after walking into the Capitol building during the January 6 riot. But federal officials have said that those involved could face more severe charges.
Acting United States Attorney for D.C., Michael Sherwin, explained in a phone call with reporters that “all options” were on the table as prosecutors consider charges, Reuters reported. According to the Washington Post, Sherwin said investigators were combing through video evidence to identify those involved and pursue arrests.
Sherwin said his office would consider charges including seditious conspiracy, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years if convicted. Here is the language in the U.S. legal code:
If two or more persons in any State or Territory, or in any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, or by force to seize, take, or possess any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof, they shall each be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.
Acting Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen also released a written statement vowing that those involved on January 6 would be arrested and charged:
Yesterday, our Nation watched in disbelief as a mob breached the Capitol Building and required federal and local law enforcement to help restore order. The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that those responsible for this attack on our Government and the rule of law face the full consequences of their actions under the law. Our criminal prosecutors have been working throughout the night with special agents and investigators from the U.S. Capitol Police, FBI, ATF, Metropolitan Police Department and the public to gather the evidence, identify perpetrators, and charge federal crimes where warranted. Some participants in yesterday’s violence will be charged today, and we will continue to methodically assess evidence, charge crimes and make arrests in the coming days and weeks to ensure that those responsible are held accountable under the law.
