Four Proud Boy leaders convicted of seditious plotting were among the Hundreds of rioters at the Capitol Who will be able to travel freely after receiving amnesty and reducing their sentence newly inaugurated chairperson Donald Trump.
Enrique Tarrio, leader of the far right at the time of the uprising four years ago, was sentenced to 22 years in prison – the longest sentence any January 6 offender has received. He received a pardon. His co-defendants Zachary Rehl, Joseph Biggs and Ethan Nordean, who were previously sentenced to 15, 17 and 18 years, had their sentences reduced and were ordered released as of Monday.
Tarrio's mother Zuny Duarte told WIRED that Enrique will return to Miami by 3 p.m. Tuesday. He is serving his sentence at the federal prison in Pollock, Louisiana.
Trump issued 14 commutations of sentences and issued a general pardon to all other individuals convicted in connection with the Capitol riot. In total, approximately 1,580 individuals were charged in connection with January 6.
“These people were destroyed, what they did to these people was outrageous, there has rarely been anything like it in the history of this country,” Trump said of the Jan. 6 meeting from the Oval Office . He also pushed conspiracy theories that “outside agitators” and the FBI were somehow responsible for the violence that occurred on January 6. Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who also was convicted of conspiracy to commit rebellion, his sentence was also reduced and he will be free.
Trump teased the upcoming pardons from his event earlier Monday at Capital One Arena, promising the imminent release of “J6 hostages.”
“Oh, you will be happy to read the paper tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day,” he said.
Reached by phone earlier Monday, Duarte told WIRED they were looking forward to Enrique's release. “The boys were very happy and thought that justice would finally come to us,” Duarte said. “Donald Trump knows what it means to be on the side of prosecution and on the side of injustice.”
When asked if Tarrio is still with the Proud Boys, Duarte replied: “That's the question you need to ask him when he gets out.”
Before Trump could get to paper, news that correctional facilities were beginning to process Jan. 6 releases began to spread online. Social media accounts linked to the Proud Boys were delighted, and Gavin McInnes, who founded the Proud Boys in 2016, declared “The Party is for the Boys” on a livestream of his show while donating to support released gang members.
As a first-day action, it was an incredibly symbolic act. Four years ago, on January 6, 2021, thousands of Trump supporters, fueled by conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, descended on DC and laid siege to the Capitol with the goal of preventing the peaceful transfer of power. jar. The ugly scenes culminated in the deaths of five people, the injuries of more than 140 police officers, and Trump leaving Washington in disgrace.
A few weeks later, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States behind riot barriers, barbed wire and under the supervision of more than 25,000 National Guard troops.