Proud Boys leader serving 22 years for Jan. 6 conviction asks Trump for mercy

WASHINGTON — Enrique Tarrio, the former president of the Proud Boys who is serving 22 years in federal prison after being convicted of seditious conspiracy in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, is seeking a presidential pardon from President-elect Donald Trump.

Nayib Hassan, Tarrio’s lawyer, wrote a letter to Trump on the fourth anniversary of the January 6 attack, asking for “a full presidential pardon” from the president-elect who committed to pardon some rioters after taking office in January. 20.

In the letter, Hassan called Tarrio, 42, “a young man with a promising future ahead of him” who was “described throughout the government’s record as a right-wing extremist promoting a neo-fascist militant organization” when, Hassan said Tarrio is “nothing more than a proud American who believes in true conservative values.”

Tarrio was one of four members of the far-right group Proud Boys convicted of seditious conspiracy in May 2023. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison, the longest sentence on January 6 to date, although he was not in Washington for the attack itself. He was arrested and ordered to stay away from the Capitol and convicted of planning and organizing members of the Proud Boys to attack the Capitol before January 6.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said after their sentencing that Tarrio and his fellow Proud Boys played a “central role” in leading the Jan. 6 mob to breach the Capitol.

During Tarrio’s trial, Hassan had blamed Trump for the actions of his client and other Proud Boys, reminding jurors that Trump had said his supporters would have to “fight like hell” or they “would have no more country “. He also argued that Trump told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by” during a 2020 presidential debate, which brought so much attention to the group that “control became difficult “.

Tarrio was arrested in connection with a separate event – ​​the burning of a Black Lives Matter banner in December 2020 – just before the January 6 attack. The Washington Metropolitan Police’s top intelligence official was convicted two weeks ago of leaking information to Tarrio, telling him just before Jan. 6, 2021, that there was a warrant for his arrest in Washington against his arrest.

As a result, Tarrio watched January 6 unfold ever since, as Hassan told the trial, from a “hotel in Baltimore.”

More than 1,580 defendants have been charged and 1,270 defendants convicted in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Trump has not given details on the number or categories of defendants he plans to pardon. In a December interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” Trump did not rule out pardoning rioters who attacked law enforcement.

The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tarrio’s pardon request.