Proud Boys Leader, Cohorts, Charged With Seditious Conspiracy Ahead of House Committee Hearing

By Matis Glenn

U.S. Capitol Building


A grand jury indicted the former leader of the far-right Proud Boys group, along with four high-ranking members, on charges related to their alleged involvement in the infamous Capitol riots of January 6, 2021. Previous counts of conspiracy were elevated to the the rarely used, severe charge of seditious conspiracy. The June 6 indictment alleges that Enrique Tarrio, the group’s leader at the time, along with co-conspirators organized and encouraged his followers to breach the Capitol in an attempt to forestall the electoral college’s vote to elect Joe Biden to succeed Donald Trump as President. Tarrio himself was not present at the riots, but communicated with supporters electronically, the court said.


Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola – Proud Boys members who were in leadership positions and were confidants of Tarrio – were indicted as well. While initially charged with conspiracy-related crimes, the new allegations of seditious conspiracy – as well as entirely new charges of conspiracy to prevent the police and Congress from discharging their official duties – significantly intensify the severity of the crimes prosecutors seek to convict the group of committing.


Charles Donohoe, a Proud Boy from North Carolina, was not mentioned on the indictment, though he had been arrested for his involvement in the riots – he pleaded guilty in April and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.


Prosecutors introduced new evidence prior to the indictment, including text messages between Tarrio and an unknown associate sent the evening of January 6, where the former leader referenced the Russian Revolution of 1917, writing a text that read “The Winter Palace”. A document titled “1776 Returns” which was discovered by investigators detailed a plan to occupy federal buildings in Washington on January 6, also made references to the Russian Revolution. From the texts it appears that Tarrio’s associate believed excitedly that if Congress had not formally transferred power to Biden by midnight of that evening, the election would be “invalid”. Tarrio responded by saying ““Let’s first see how this plays out.” According to the indictment, Tarrio created a chapter within the Proud Boys called the “Ministry of Self Defense” for the purpose of “national rally planning” in December of 2020.


The indictment comes mere days before the long-awaited House committee on January 6’s public hearing, scheduled for June 9. The hearing will include testimony from Nick Quested, who while making a documentary on the issues, imbedded himself among the protestors, according to the Times. Capitol Police Officer Caroline Edwards, who was injured during the riots, is said to testify as well.


The House’s investigation is reportedly going after former Trump associates as well.


The DOJ has charged two former aides to Trump, Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro, with defying subpoenas from the House committee, which would have included misdemeanor charges related to the events of January 6; no indictment was made for either of the two men. It is expected that following the hearings, more Trump allies will be accused of playing some sort of role in the incident, or failing to stop it from continuing.

Many Proud Boys members were on the scene at the Capitol and were reportedly among the first to breach the building, according to the DOJ and as seen in videos of Proud Boys marchers approaching the barricades of the Capitol building before former President Trump had completed his speech at the Ellipse. The Department believes that the group, which requires getting involved in a physical altercation to ascend its ranks, played a central role in the riots, “directing” and “mobilizing” the protestors.


Tarrio, who has been in prison awaiting trial for his role in the events of January 6 since March of this year, was denied the opportunity to be released on bail late May. Judge Timothy Kelly said that Tarrio “has the skill set, resources, and networks to plan similar challenges to the lawful functioning of the United States government in the future,” and ordered that he be remanded until trial. The judge said that the evidence is “very strong” and that measures like a bond and home confinement “do not adequately mitigate the threat of dangerousness Tarrio poses.” After Tarrio was imprisoned, it isn’t clear if the Proud Boys have a new leader.


The new charges bring the Proud Boys leadership in step with another far-right group who took part in the riots; the Oath Keepers. Their leader, Stewart Rhodes was also charged with seditious conspiracy in January 2022, and is still awaiting trial.


Pezzola, a prominent New York based Proud Boys member, used a police shield to break through a window of the Capitol, footage shows. A mob of protestors stormed the building immediately after, the beginning of a struggle which prompted government officials to evacuate to safety and caused a delay in the electoral vote.


Prosecutors discovered text messages sent by one of the four members on Jan. 3, 2021, which said “What would they do if 1 million patriots stormed and too the capital building. Shoot into the crowd? I think not…They would do nothing because they can do nothing,”


The New York Times reports that Tarrio’s lawyers have argued that there is no evidence that he and the Proud Boys were conspiring ahead of time to storm the Capitol. In response to claims that they were armed and prepared with protective gear, the lawyers say that they were intended to protect themselves from the anti-Trump activists that they encountered at previous DC events. His defense has repeatedly stressed that he was nowhere near the Capitol during the incident, as he had left the area after being arrested for burning a Black Lives Matter flag in December 2020.


Carmen Hernandez, representing Rehl, wrote that the new indictment “does not allege that Mr. Rehl used force at any time nor encouraged anyone to do so,” and that “The worst that has been alleged against Mr. Rehl is that he has associated himself with the Proud Boys, a lawful fraternal association as is his right protected by the First Amendment,” Hernandez said.

Tarrio and the other defendants are expected to appear in federal court in Washington, DC, on June 9. The defendants previously pleaded not guilty; they have not yet had the opportunity to file a plea at this time.

mglenn@hamodia.com

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