Five far-right Proud Boys members found guilty over January 6 Capitol riot
Five members of the far-right group the Proud Boys have been found guilty in a trial over their role in the January 6 riots on Capitol Hill.
Five members of the far-right group the Proud Boys have been found guilty over the January 2021 Capitol riots.
Chairman Enrique Tarrio, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola were all found guilty of actual obstruction of Congress.
Tarrio, Nordean, Biggs and Rehl were also found guilty of seditious conspiracy, defined as a plot to overthrow the Government or use force "to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law" of the US, and on conspiracy to obstruct the proceedings off January 6.
The jury could not reach a verdict on Pezzola in regards to the charges of seditious conspiracy and obstruction of January 6, and are still deliberating on whether he is guilty.
Seditious conspiracy carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
Five people died in the January 6 riots, which were sparked after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in hopes of preventing Joe Biden’s election win being certified by Congress.
Prosecutors said that the five Proud Boys did not attend Donald Trump’s speech, and instead began a march to the Capitol.
Prosecutors also alleged that leaders of the group riled Trump supporters up and communicated with them, through hand signals, to move ahead once they were inside the building.
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Tarrio was the leader of the far-right and neo-fascist group, but was not present himself at the riots having been ordered by a judge to remain outside Washington D.C. after being arrested just days prior in connection with burning a Black Lives Matter Flag taken from a nearby church.
Nordean, Biggs and Rehl led Proud Boys chapters in Washington, Florida, and Pennsylvania respectively.
Pezzola was a member of the group, and was among the very first who reached the entrances to the Capitol.
Prosecutors have claimed he was seen having "ripped away" an officer’s riot shield, and "can be seen on video that has been widely distributed, using that riot shield to smash a window at the US Capitol”.
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