GLOUCESTER, Va. — In Gloucester, four men are facing gun charges after deputies said they brought weapons into a school board meeting.
The incident happened on July 11, when an eyewitness said one unidentified man approached Gloucester's school board to accuse them of slashing his car's tires in an act of "political violence" against him.
Deputies later identified the man as 28-year-old Trevor Herrin. Law enforcement followed Herrin and multiple other men outside and found several of them carrying guns and knives.
Authorities charged the following men with carrying a firearm onto school property:
- 32-year-old Derek Coblentz
- 26-year-old Christopher Cordasco
- 27-year-old Antonio Hernandez
Authorities charged Herrin with carrying a firearm onto school property, along with unlawfully possessing a concealed firearm.
However, an eyewitness said the men initially walked away with no charges the night of the incident. Deputies later charged them on July 14.
Major Ryan Cookson with Gloucester County Sheriff's Office said, "The investigation which led to the arrests was fairly involved and time-consuming and our conclusion was reached as quickly as we could, under these circumstances."
The eyewitness told 13News Now since deputies made the arrests, they've seen an alarming amount of "threats" on social media.
"The threats that I've seen online are people saying they are coming into Gloucester and showing us 'what's up,' coming into Gloucester and doing a protest," said the eyewitness.
Cookson said this remains an open investigation and "we are continually looking into any information and/or threats that may show up on our social media posts."
All of the men are expected to be in court on July 26.