On Monday, five members of the Proud Boys, a far-right group, were indicted by a federal grand jury on the charge of seditious conspiracy, for their participation in the riots at the US Capitol on Jan 6, 2021.
The five indicted are the leader, Enrique Tarrio, and members Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl and Dominic Pezzola. A sixth member, Charles Donohoe, has already taken a plea deal and pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges. All five men are already being charged with conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding.
Seditious conspiracy is a charge that is rarely prosecuted. It is defined as two or more people conspiring and intending to “overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States.”
The last time the government had brought such severe charges was against a Christian nationalist militia group in 2010, but the charges were thrown out by the judge. Before that case, the Justice Department had brought seditious conspiracy charges only three times in the previous 20 years – twice for al-Qaeda cells in the US, and once for the al-Qaeda operatives responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and terror attacks in New York.
The seditious conspiracy charges are the severest charges brought by the Justice Department against the Proud Boys.
The charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The five members are accused of working together to prevent Congress from performing its duties during the counting of the Electoral College vote for President in 2020.
Investigators uncovered evidence that showed that the Proud Boys conspired and planned their assault prior to January 6.
The leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, although indicted for his role in planning the attack, was not present at the rally and storming of the Capitol on January 6. After being arrested on weapons charges in December 2020, he was ordered by the court to stay out of Washington, DC.
His fellow four members led a crowd that marched to the Capitol following Donald Trump’s speech. They were also joined by the Oath Keepers, a militia group whose leaders are also facing charges of seditious conspiracy. Three of the Oath Keeper leaders have already pleaded guilty.
Several people were killed in the attack on the Capitol, and hundreds were injured.
The indicted Proud Boys are scheduled to appear in court on June 9.
On Thursday, the House committee that has been investigating the events of January 6, will begin to broadcast its first public hearings. They have been investigating for 11 months and have conducted more than 1,000 interviews. The hearings will be live-streamed, and several television stations will broadcast them.
Thursday night at 8 PM the public can tune in to learn what happened behind the scenes on that fateful day in US history.
