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Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio Sentenced
On Tuesday, September 5, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, 39, of Miami, has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy.
Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio Sentenced. Tarrio, 39, of Miami, was sentenced to years in 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and leading a failed plot to prevent the transfer of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden on Tuesday, September 5. While Tarrio received the longest sentence of any January 6 defendant, the Justice Department had sought 33 years in prison.
He did not physically participate in the breach of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021. He was accused of leading the advance planning and staying in contact with other Proud Boys members during the breach, in any case.
Calling Tarrio and his codefendants the “foot soldiers of the right,” prosecutors sought a 33-year prison sentence. Tarrio was convicted of seditious conspiracy for his role in conspiring with his lieutenants to prevent the certification of the 2020 presidential election. He was conspiring to keep former President Donald Trump in power.
“Did Enrique Tarrio make comments that were egregious? Absolutely,” Tarrio’s defense attorney asked the jury in closing arguments. “You may not like what he said, but it is First Amendment-protected speech.”
Tarrio’s attorneys pleaded with the judge to “see another side of him – one that is benevolent, cooperative with law enforcement, useful in the community, hardworking, and with a tight-knit family unit and community support.”
Tarrio’s Sentencing Hearing
Tarrio apologized for the “pain and suffering” that law enforcement, legislators, and others experienced on January 6, and vowed that he would have “nothing to do with politics, groups, activism, or rallies.”
“I have always tried to hold myself to a higher standard, and I have failed,” he admitted. “I held myself morally above others, and this trial has shown me how wrong I was.”
Tarrio stated that he was opposed to the Capitol violence: “I am not a political zealot. Inflicting harm or changing the outcome of the election was not my goal.”
Tarrio, according to Prosecutor Conor Mulroe, had a “toxic ability to control others” and was the “leader of this conspiracy” that “targeted our entire system of government.”
“It is kind of hard to put into words how important the peaceful transfer of power is,” U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly said. “Our country was founded as an experiment in self-government by the people, but it cannot long endure if the way we elect our leaders is threatened with force and violence.”
Read the original indictment filed with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (Case 1:21-cr-00175-TJK) here.
Henry “Enrique” Tarrio
Henry “Enrique” Tarrio is a far-right activist in the United States. From 2018 to 2021, he was the chairman of the Proud Boys. The Proud Boys is a neo-fascist, exclusively male organization in the United States that promotes and engages in political violence.
Enrique Tarrio longtime Proud Boys chairman was arrested on his way to Washington, DC. This took place just days before the January 6 riot.
The Debate
PICTURE: Capitol building was stormed. Many were part of racist, white supremacist, far-right groups such as the Proud Boys, and were there to back Donald Trump, echoing his unfounded claims of electoral fraud after losing the election. PHOTO: COURTESY OF: Proud Boys USA Instagram. Dated January 7, 2021.
On January 6, 2021, President Trump is believed to have incited a mob to attack Congress as members were certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s election. The apparent insurrectionists attacked the Capitol Building. They forced their way past reportedly understaffed Capitol Police. Lawmakers and their staffs had to flee, delaying the Congressional session. During the initial assault on the Capital four people were killed. A fifth, a Capitol Police officer, died the next day from injuries sustained while engaging with rioters.
The main point of contention was whether longtime Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio directed his Proud Boys to attack the Capitol while he was away.
For the Defense
His lawyer argued that “Tarrio was not even present at the scene in Washington, D.C.; he did not direct his fellow members of Proud Boys or anyone else to assault people on the day in question or destroy any government property.”
Tarrio was not present at the riot. He had been arrested two days prior for torching a Black Lives Matter banner stolen from Asbury United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C. Tarrio had been ordered out of town. Proud Boys members joined thousands of Trump supporters in storming the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to certify Joe Biden’s election victory.
Tarrio’s attorney stated that he had no contact with any members of the organization during the riot and named Nordean and Biggs as the riot’s organizers. They went on to say that “participating in a plan for the Proud Boys to protest on January 6 is not the same as directing others on the ground to storm the Capitol by any means necessary.”
Tarrio’s lawyers denied that the Proud Boys intended to attack the Capitol. Prosecutors, they claimed, used Tarrio as a scapegoat for Trump, who spoke at the “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House on Jan. 6 and urged his supporters to “fight like hell.”
Tarrio’s lawyer, Sabino Jauregui, fought extra terrorism penalties on Tuesday, claiming that “it was not his intention to bring down the United States government, or overthrow the United States government.”
“My client is no terrorist,” said Jauregui. “My client is a misguided patriot. That’s what my client is. This is not some foreign national waging war against the United States – he thought he was saving this country, saving this republic.”
For the Prosecution
Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio Sentenced. Prosecutors claimed Tarrio directed his Proud Boys to attack the Capitol while he was away. According to prosecutors, Tarrio organized and led his Proud Boys onto the Capitol grounds from afar in his physical absence, resulting in the dismantling of barricades, breaching of the Capitol building, assaults on police, and property destruction from afar in his absence, inspiring followers with his charisma and penchant for propaganda.
Prosecutors also stated that Tarrio claimed responsibility for the riot on behalf of the group. “Make no mistake…we did this,” Tarrio wrote on social media during the riot. During the riot, Tarrio also posted encouraging messages on social media, expressing pride in what he witnessed at the Capitol and urging his followers to remain there. He also captioned a photo of rioters in the Senate chamber “1776.”
Several days before the riot, a girlfriend sent Tarrio a document entitled “1776 Returns.” It called for storming and occupying government buildings in Washington “for the purpose of getting the government to overturn the election results,” according to prosecutors.
According to Prosecutor Conor Mulroe, Tarrio had a “toxic ability to control others” and was the “leader of this conspiracy” that “targeted our entire system of government.” Tarrio was described by Mulroe as having a “toxic ability to control others” and having “increased his own fame and stature by fanning the flame of violence, political violence.”“These are men who would never strap a bomb to their chest or sign up for a training camp, but they are thrilled by the notion of traveling from city to city and beating their advisories senseless in a street fight,” Mulroe explained.
The Man Behind the Story
PICTURE: Enrique Tarrio – International Chairman Proud Boys. PHOTO: COURTESY OF: Peter Duke vía Wimikepdia
Henry “Enrique” Tarrio was born in Little Havana, Miami, Florida, in 1985, and raised as a Catholic. According to reports, he is of Cuban descent and identifies as an Afro-Cuban. Regarding his own ethnicity, he has said, “I’m pretty brown, I’m Cuban. There’s nothing white supremacist about me.”
Personal life
Little is known about Enrique Tarrio’s personal life, it has been confirmed that he is divorced from his wife.
Enrique Tarrio’s career
Tarrio became a small businessman, initially running a North Florida poultry for a while after 2004. Later, he returned to Miami and established a security equipment installation company, and a GPS tracker company. He currently owns the 1776 Shop, a Miami-based t-shirt company that serves as an online vendor for right-wing merchandise.
A Former FBI informant
According to Reuters reports from 2021, Enrique Tarrio worked as an FBI Informant for both federal and local law enforcement between 2012 and 2014. These reports caused a massive schism within the Proud Boys organization, eventually leading to its separation from the national organization.
Florida State Director of ‘Latinos for Trump’
Enrique Tarrio was the Florida State Director of “Latinos For Trump,”. It is grassroots organization founded in 2019 to support former US President Donald J Trump.
Fourth-Degree Member of Proud Boys
He joined the Proud Boys in 2017 after meeting them at an event hosted by Milo Yiannopoulos. That meeting lead to the protest against the removal Confederate statues at the Unite the Right rally in Virginia.
Tarrio became a fourth-degree member of the far-right Proud Boys in 2018. A distinction reserved for those who engage in a physical altercation “for the cause”. It is believed that he punched someone thought to be affiliated with Antifa.
On November 21, 2018, he took over as chairman of the organization, succeeding Jason Lee Van Dyke, who held the position for two days, and Van Dyke’s predecessor Gavin McInnes, who founded the group in 2016.
Republican primary election candidate
Enrique Tarrio ran in the Republican primary election for Florida’s 27th congressional district in 2020. He later withdrew from the elections for unknown reasons.
Tarrio listed criminal justice reform, Second Amendment protection, countering domestic terrorism, ending the war on drugs, free speech on digital platforms, and immigration as priorities in his campaign’s responses to a Ballotpedia survey conducted in 2019.
Enrique Tarrio on his views on extremists ideologies
As far as extremist groups and ideologies are concerned, Tarrio has said he opposes white supremacy, antisemitism, racism, fascism, communism, and any other group or ideology that discriminates against people on the basis of their race, religion, culture, or skin color.
Zoom Out: Upcoming Presidential Election Cycle
PICTURE: Four members of far-right political group Proud Boys found themselves guilty of seditious conspiracy for their role in the US Capitol riot. PHOTO: COURTESY OF: Proud Boys USA Instagram. Dated May 4, 2023.
Proud Boys Leader Enrique Tarrio Sentenced. According to the Justice Department, 1,100 people faced federal crimes charges in connection with the attack on the Capitol. 600 of them have undergone sentencing, with more than half receiving prison sentences.
Questions have arisen about what impact, if any, the sentences imposed on members of far-right groups who played a key role in the Jan. 6 attack will have in battleground states ahead of next year’s presidential election cycle.
In response to the Jan. 6 attacks, Republicans are attempting to interpret the sentences handed down to members of far-right groups. Political pundits are trying to figure out where the party is going while emphasizing their respect for government processes.
Whether their convictions and sentences will have any impact on the upcoming presidential election cycle is unknown. Fortunately for the more serious conservative establishment, name recognition will not have much effect on the upcoming presidential election.
The Big Picture
Will Trump, who saw his mug shot as a fundraising opportunity, use Tarrio’s mug shot the same way?
Read the original indictment filed with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (Case 1:21-cr-00175-TJK) here.
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