Former Proud Boys leader sentenced to 22 years in prison in Jan 6 case

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - The former leader of the right-wing Proud Boys group, Enrique Tarrio, was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

"His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election," said the Justice Department in a release.

Tarrio's sentence is the longest so far related to the Jan. 6 attack on Congress.

"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," said Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Over the past week, four members of the Proud Boys received sentences.

US Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves said no organization put more boots on the ground at the Capitol on Jan. 6 than the Proud Boys, and they were at the forefront of every major breach of the Capitol’s defenses.

"The leaders of the Proud Boys and the leaders of the Oath Keepers, who conspired before, during, and after the siege of the Capitol to use force against their own government to prevent the peaceful transfer of power have now been held accountable," said Graves.

On May 4 this year, 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 Capitol on Jan 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," said the statement.

Over the course of 31 months since Jan. 6, 2021, authorities have made over 1,106 arrests across nearly all 50 states in connection with the breach of the US Capitol.

Among these arrests, more than 350 individuals have been charged with offenses related to assaulting or obstructing law enforcement.