Ex-Proud Boys Leader Indicted For Seditious Conspiracy In Sweeping Jan. 6 Case

Topline

Five alleged members of the Proud Boys—including its ex-leader Enrique Tarrio—were indicted for seditious conspiracy Monday, according to the Department of Justice, marking the second far-right group to face that charge after its members allegedly coordinated with each other during the Capitol riot.

Key Facts

Federal prosecutors initially charged Tarrio and the other four defendants with conspiracy and several other offenses in March, leading them to plead guilty, but the more significant charge of seditious conspiracy—which is defined as conspiracy to oppose or interfere with the government—was added Monday.

It appears to be only the second time during the DOJ’s massive Capitol riot investigation that a group has been charged with seditious conspiracy, after prosecutors previously used the charge on 11 members of the anti-government Oath Keepers militia.

The DOJ alleged that leaders of Proud Boys encouraged their members to go to Washington on January 6, used radios and messaging apps to help “coordinate” the attack on the Capitol that afternoon and led a group to the Capitol building, where some of them stormed past barricades and assaulted police officers.

Prosecutors say Tarrio was in Maryland on the day of the attack, after he was arrested and ordered to leave D.C. two days earlier, but he was still in touch with Proud Boys during the riot, at one point allegedly telling a member of the group “we did this.”

Tarrio’s attorney Nayib Hassan told Forbes his client “will have his day in court” and “looks forward to [being] vindicated of these allegations.”

Tangent

The Proud Boys were formed in 2016 by Vice co-founder Gavin McInnis, who described the all-male group as a club for “Western chauvinists” (McInnis claims to have quit the organization). The group has denied any links to extremism, but in recent years, its members have been tied to offensive rhetoric and street brawls with left-leaning protesters. Two months after former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss, members of the group were accused of destroying a D.C. church’s Black Lives Matter sign during raucous nighttime protests—and Tarrio was arrested for his alleged role in the incident on January 4, 2021, which is why he wasn’t permitted to enter the city on the day of the Capitol riot. Over two dozen alleged affiliates of the Proud Boys—a group that has often vehemently backed Trump—have been charged with participating in the January 6 Capitol attack, and at least three have pleaded guilty.

Key Background

The DOJ has charged over 800 people with participating in the Capitol riot, part of what prosecutors have described as one of the largest federal criminal investigations in U.S. history. Many of the defendants were charged with smaller crimes like unlawful entry or picketing, but the DOJ has focused on investigating far-right groups with ties to the riot. Leaders of the Oath Keepers—including founder Stewart Rhodes—were charged with organizing groups of rioters to move in formation toward the Capitol, part of an alleged plot to derail the transfer of power to then-President-elect Joe Biden, though Rhodes hasn’t been accused of entering the Capitol building himself. Several members of the Three Percenters, another right-wing group, have also been charged in connection to the attack.

Further Reading

Ex-Proud Boys Leader Tarrio Charged For Role In Jan. 6 Capitol Riot (Forbes)