It has been revealed that a leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, has a long history as a law enforcement informant.
During Tarrio’s Miami hearing, an FBI investigator, federal prosecutor, and his lawyer outlined his undercover work as a local and federal informant following his 2012 arrest. He has helped authorities prosecute 13 people through his cooperation in cases involving human smuggling, gambling, and drugs. A former prosecutor and a 2014 transcript of a federal court case confirmed the cooperation.
The transcript shows that the prosecutor and Tarrio’s defense attorney at the time asked a judge to lighten the prison sentence for Tarrio and two co-defendants. The group pleaded guilty in a fraud case.
The former federal prosecutor in Tarrio’s case, Vanessa Singh Johannes, also confirmed that “he cooperated with local and federal law enforcement, to aid in the prosecution of those running other, separate criminal enterprises, ranging from running marijuana grow houses in Miami to operating pharmaceutical fraud schemes.”
Despite these confirmations from authorities, Tarrio denied working with law enforcement in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday.
“I don’t know any of this,” he denied. “I don’t recall any of this.”
The 36-year-old Proud Boys organizer was not present during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. He was arrested two days before in Washington and charged with possessing two high-capacity rifle magazines and burning a Black Lives Matter banner during a pro-Trump riot in December. He was ordered to leave the city until his June court date.
At Least five Proud Boys members have been charged in connection with the riot.
