4 tied to farright Proud Boys face charges in melee

Four men described as leaders of the farright Proud Boys have been charged in the U.S. Capitol riot, as an indictment ordered unsealed presents fresh evidence of how federal officials believe group members planned and carried out a coordinated attack to stop Congress from certifying President Biden’s electoral victory.

So far, at least 19 leaders, members or associates of the neofascist Proud Boys have been charged in federal court with offenses related to the

Jan. 6 riots. The latest indictment suggests the Proud Boys deployed a much larger contingent in Washington, with over 60 users “participating in” an encrypted messaging channel for group members that was created a day before the riots.

The Proud Boys abandoned an earlier channel and created the new “Boots on the Ground” channel after police arrested the group’s top leader, Enrique Tarrio, in Washington. Tarrio was arrested on Jan. 4 and charged with vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic Black church during a protest in December. He was ordered to stay out of the District of Columbia.

Tarrio hasn’t been charged in connection with the riots, but the latest indictment refers to him by his title as Proud Boys’ chairman. Ethan Nordean and Joseph Biggs, two of the four defendants charged in the latest indictment, were arrested several weeks ago on separate but related charges. The new indictment also charges Zachary Rehl and Charles Donohoe.

All four defendants are charged with conspiring to impede Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote. Other charges in the indictment unsealed Friday include obstruction of an official proceeding, obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder and disorderly conduct.

Nordean, 30, of Auburn, Wash., was a Proud Boys chapter president and member of the group’s national “Elders Council.” Biggs, 37, of Ormond Beach, Fla., is a selfdescribed Proud Boys organizer. Rehl, 35, of Philadelphia, and Donohoe, 33, of North Carolina, serve as presidents of their local Proud Boys chapters, according to the indictment.

A lawyer for Biggs declined to comment. Attorneys for the other three men didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.

Proud Boys members, who describe themselves as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists,” have frequently engaged in street fights with antifascist activists at rallies and protests. Vice Media cofounder Gavin McInnes, who founded the Proud Boys in 2016, sued the Southern Poverty Law Center for labeling it as a hate group.

Carolyn Kaster / Associated Press Proud Boy members Joseph Biggs (left) and Ethan Nordean approach the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6.