Enrique Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in federal jail for instigating the January 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol.
Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the previous chair and chief of the Proud Boys, a far proper, white nationalist group, was sentenced on Tuesday to 22 years in federal jail for his involvement within the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.
Tarrio was convicted in Could of seditious conspiracy for his position within the assault, attempting to maintain former President Donald Trump in energy past his single time period in workplace, despite Trump shedding the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.
Though Tarrio wasn’t on the Capitol in individual throughout the assault, prosecutors famous that he acted as “a general” to other Proud Boys members who had been partaking in direct violence there, in an effort to disrupt the congressional proceedings that had been going down that day to certify the presidential election outcomes. Tarrio also proudly took direct credit for his group’s violent actions.
“No group put extra boots on the bottom on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, than the Proud Boys, and so they had been on the forefront of each main breach of the Capitol’s defenses, main the on-the-ground efforts to storm the seat of presidency,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matt Graves said in a statement.
Prosecutors famous that Tarrio, whom they described as “a savvy propagandist and the celeb Chairman of the nationwide Proud Boys group,” confirmed no regret throughout his trial earlier this yr. When requested whether or not he needed to denounce something that occurred on January 6, Tarrio reportedly responded by saying, “denounce this, dick.”
Prosecutors additionally known as for a terrorism enhancement to Tarrio’s sentence, which the decide agreed to apply, though he issued a lesser sentence than the lengthier sentence of 33 years requested.
Nonetheless, U.S. Legal professional Normal Merrick Garland lauded the sentence that Tarrio did obtain – the longest but handed all the way down to anybody concerned within the January 6 assault.
“Right now, the chief of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, discovered that the consequence of conspiring to oppose by power the lawful switch of presidential energy is 22 years in federal jail,” Garland said.
Tarrio and the Proud Boys have been ardent supporters of Trump, particularly after the previous president talked about them throughout the 2020 presidential debate. When requested by a moderator whether or not he denounced white supremacist teams, Trump requested for a selected instance, and was requested what he’d say to the Proud Boys.
Trump’s response, fairly than a condemnation, was to tell the group to “stand back and stand by,” which many interpreted as a coded message to the group that he supported them. And it was interpreted as such by Tarrio and the Proud Boys themselves, who used Trump’s words for a recruitment campaign.
Proof introduced on the trials of Proud Boys additionally showcased how Trump’s marketing campaign group requested the group to attend “Cease the Steal” rallies, after the 2020 election was known as for Biden, in plainclothes, fairly than of their typical black and yellow colours. Communications between the 2 entities additionally indicated that Tarrio was conscious, within the days main as much as January 6, that the occasion might erupt into violence.
“No matter occurs … make it a spectacle,” Tarrio stated to different Proud Boys members in a message simply two days earlier than the Capitol assault.
