Storming of the US Capitol: four members of a far-right group found guilty of a rare charge

U.S. Capitol stormed: four members of a far-right group found guilty of a rare charge

MISE À DAY

Four members of the far-right group “Proud Boys”, involved in the assault on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, were found guilty on Thursday of “sedition”, according to several US media, a chief of extremely rare charge.

Their former leader, Enrique Tarrio, is among the four convicted.

They were five members of the group to be tried by a court in Washington for having, with a crowd of supporters of Republican President Donald Trump, sown chaos in the seat of Congress, when elected officials certified the election of his Democratic rival. Joe Biden at the White House.

The jury failed to agree on the 'sedition' charge for the fifth defendant, but all five were also found guilty of obstruction of the work of Congress and destruction of public property, in particular.

Since the attack on January 6, 2021, more than 950 supporters of former Republican President Donald Trump have been arrested and charged with causing havoc in the seat of American democracy.

At the end of two other trials, concluded in November and January, six members of another far-right militia, the “Oath Keepers”, had already been convicted of sedition , a leader facing up to 20 years in prison for planning the use of force to oppose the government.

Difficult to prove, it is very rarely used, and the previous conviction as such, before those of November and January, dated back almost a quarter of a century.

The trial of the five members of the Proud Boys opened in December in a court in the federal capital.

Former “national president” of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, arrested in Miami in March 2022, was not in Washington on January 6, but was suspected of having led the attack on the temple of American democracy by members of this neo-fascist organization.

The founder of the far-right Oath Keepers militia, Stewart Rhodes, was among the members of this group to be convicted in November of “sedition”.

According to Enrique Tarrio's indictment, he spoke with Stewart Rhodes on January 5 in an underground parking lot in Washington and stayed in contact with members of the Proud Boys who entered the Capitol .

Four of his associates were accused of having directly taken part in the assault.

In a video of the event, one of them, Dominic Pezzola, can be seen handling a riot shield – stolen from police – and smashing a window in the Capitol.

During the cold winter day of January 6, 2021, thousands of supporters of President Donald Trump had gathered in Washington to denounce the result of the 2020 election which had seen the ex-real estate magnate lose.

A mob stormed the headquarters of the US Congress, sending shock waves around the world.

Nearly two years later The event, a parliamentary commission of inquiry into the attack had recommended that criminal proceedings be launched against ex-president Donald Trump, in particular for calling for insurrection and conspiracy against the American state.

Non-binding, the decision was nonetheless historic, since it was aimed at a former head of state. Donald Trump immediately denounced a maneuver aimed, according to him, at hindering his new candidacy for the presidency.