Days after her non-arrest for trespassing in Napa, Laura Loomer hopped a fence at the Governor’s Mansion in Sacramento
Laura Loomer was not alone when she scaled a fence and entered Nancy and Paul Pelosi’s private property in St. Helena on January 14, 2019. The Napa Valley Register did not identify the man with Loomer and reported that neither was arrested by Napa sheriff’s deputies, even after Loomer freely admitted to trying to open a locked front door.
Unlike Napa sheriff deputies, Sacramento law enforcement took Loomer trespass seriously
Days later, a similar stunt at the Governor’s mansion in Sacramento landed Loomer and her companion behind bars. This time, The Sacramento Bee revealed Loomer’s circus-worthy sideshow companion and fellow arrestee as Central Valley Tea Party founder and alt-right radio host Ben Berqguam.
Berqguam and Loomer, who were charged and released the same day, amplified their racist rhetoric by wearing serape blankets and colorful sombrero hats to confront people at a Mexican restaurant in downtown Sacramento. Berqguam doubled down on his racial stereotyping with a glued-on, oversized mustache reminiscent of a corn chip advertising character from another era.