Proud Boys leader sentenced to five months behind bars in DC jail

It was then the cops found the magazines on him. Then on Dec. 12, the Proud Boys gathered in DC to protest the election results. It was then Tarrio burned a Black Lives Matter banner belonging to Asbury United Methodist Church.

When it came to the high-capacity magazines, Tarrio told the court he was selling the items to a customer "who was [...] traveling to DC on Jan 6."

A BuzzFeed News reporter live tweeted the proceedings and described Tarrio as showing remorse for what he did. Enrique said he doesn't even carry around a pocket knife anymore, let alone the pair of high-capacity magazines that got him in trouble to begin with. However, Judge Cushenberry thought otherwise. He accused Tarrio of being about self-promotion and having a previous awareness of the law.

Tarrio's sentence is 125 days in jail for the magazines, and an additional 30 days for burning the BLM banner, amounting to a total of 155 consecutive days served with an additional 85 days suspended.

According to VICE, Rev. Dr Ianther Mills gave testimony against Tarrio: "This was deliberate and planned. Who carries a bottle of lighter fluid to a peaceful demonstration? In our opinion, this was an act of intimidation and racism."

(However, in February 2021, Vanity Fair described the Proud Boys leader as a Cuban person of color.)

A response statement from Enrique Tarrio was shared to Telegram, over today’s news: "Free speech is protected under the United States constitution. Sadly, with online censorship by Big Tech and in-person violent intimidation tactics from BLM and Antifa, many Americans have been robbed of their free speech rights. I will continue to do everything in my power to call out their hypocrisy and protect my fellow Americans from their depraved acts of violence."

It's said that Tarrio is stepping down as leader of the Proud Boys next month. He must report to the prison to serve his time on Sept. 6. The DC jail where Tarrio is serving time is the same jail that "[d]ozens of Jan 6 defendants" are also at.