Enrique Tarrio, the former leader of the far-right Proud Boys militia, was sentenced to 22 years in prison on Tuesday for his role in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol, the stiffest sentence handed out so far.
“That day broke our previously unbroken tradition of peacefully transferring power,” US District Judge Timothy Kelly said of the attempt to stop the congressional certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory over Donald Trump.
“Mr Tarrio was the ultimate leader of the conspiracy,” Kelly said during a nearly four-hour sentencing hearing in the nation’s capital.
Prosecutors had sought a 33-year prison term for Tarrio, who was not in Washington on January 6 but was accused of directing the military-style assault on the Capitol by members of the Proud Boys and other supporters of the former president.
The 39-year-old Tarrio and several other members of the Proud Boys were convicted of seditious conspiracy in May for their roles in the attack.
Another member of the Proud Boys, Ethan Nordean, 32, received an 18-year prison sentence from Kelly last week.
Stewart Rhodes, the founder of another far-right militia central to the Capitol siege, the Oath Keepers, was also sentenced to 18 years in prison earlier this year.
Tarrio addressed the court before the sentence was handed down and said January 6 was a “national embarrassment.”
“My candidate lost,” he said. “I persisted when I should have calmed.”
Tarrio, who appeared to choke up on several occasions, apologized to members of law enforcement who were attacked by rioters on what he called a “horrible day.”
“I failed miserably,” he said. “This trial has humbled me.”
Prosecutor Conor Mulroe, arguing for the 33-year prison term, said Tarrio and the other members of the Proud Boys “tried to use force and violence to try and impose their view of what was right for the country.”
“It was Mr Tarrio with the assistance of his codefendants who put this group together,” Mulroe said.
