22 years: Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio gets longest prison sentence yet for orchestrating Jan. 6 Capitol Riot
The former national chairman of the Proud Boys was sentenced yesterday for seditious conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, 39, of Miami, Florida, was sentenced to 22 years in prison and 36 months of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly.
His is the longest sentence, to date, related to the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
Interestingly, Tarrio wasn’t even physically at the January 6 Capitol breach, because he was arrested days earlier for vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic Black church in D.C. in 2020, according to Axios. But he was one of the primary organizers of the January Capitol breach, and prosecutors originally hoped they could put him away for 33 years.
“On January 6th, 2021, the United States Capitol was attacked, 140 law enforcement officers defending those inside were assaulted, and the peaceful transfer of power to a newly elected government – a cornerstone of our democracy – was interrupted,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.
“The Justice Department proved in court that the Proud Boys played a central role in setting the January 6th attack on our Capitol into motion. Over the past week, four members of the Proud Boys received sentences that reflect the danger their crimes pose to our democracy. Today, the leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, learned that the consequence of conspiring to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power is 22 years in federal prison.”
On May 4, 2023, a jury found Tarrio and three other co-defendants guilty of multiple felonies, including seditious conspiracy, for their actions before and during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
Previously sentenced in this matter were co-defendants Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola. Nordean was sentenced to 18 years in prison, Biggs was sentenced to 17 years, Rehl was sentenced to 15 years, and Pezzola was sentenced to 10 years.
According to court documents and evidence presented during the trial, prior to the events of January 6, 2021, Tarrio created a special chapter of the Proud Boys known as the “Ministry of Self-Defense,” which included co-defendants Nordean, Biggs, and Rehl. As part of this group, these defendants conspired to prevent, hinder, and delay the certification of the Electoral College vote and to oppose by force the authority of the government of the United States.
In the days leading to January 6, Tarrio and other leaders of the Ministry of Self-Defense hand-selected members of the organization, including co-defendant Dominic Pezzola, to serve as “rally boys” during the attack on the Capitol. To prepare for the attack, Tarrio and the other leaders established a chain of command, chose a time and place for their attack, and intentionally recruited others who would follow their top-down leadership and who were prepared to engage in physical violence if necessary.
On January 6, the group began their assault that day at 10:00 a.m. when Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, and others marched an assembled group of nearly 200 individuals away from speeches at the Ellipse and directly toward the Capitol. At 2:11 p.m., Pezzola smashed open a window, allowing the first rioters to enter the Capitol as Biggs and those with him entered close behind. Court documents say that Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, and the men they recruited and led participated in every consequential breach at the Capitol that day.
As the events of January 6 unfolded, Tarrio, who was monitoring the attack from afar, posted encouraging messages to his tens of thousands of social media followers, including: “Proud of my boys and my country” and “Don’t f****** leave.” Tarrio privately claimed credit for the riot at the Capitol, telling Proud Boys senior leadership, “Make no mistake . . . we did this.” On January 7th, Tarrio addressed the Ministry of Self-Defense members, telling them he was “proud of y’all.”
During the hearing, U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly found that Tarrio’s conduct constituted an official act of terrorism and applied an enhancement to his final sentence.
In the 31 months since January 6, 2021, more than 1,106 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 350 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov
For more on the sentencing of Enrique Tarrio, see the video accompanying this article.
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(Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Columbia)
(Cover photo of Henry Enrique Tarrio, Image credit: Twitter)
~ Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
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