The ex-leader of the extremist Proud Boys, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, who faces a series of charges including conspiracy related to the Jan. 6 attack, will remain in jail ahead of his trial, a judge in Miami, Florida ruled Tuesday.
The far-right leader was arrested and led out of his home in his underwear last week. Tuesday’s hearing came after a brief delay when Tarrio hired a new lawyer and requested his attorney receive extra time to review the case.
That defense attorney will likely need all the help he can get after it was reported on Monday that, among Tarrio’s belongings, prosecutors found a comprehensive plan to storm government buildings around the Capitol.
The plan was part of a document titled “1776 Returns,” and though it was mentioned broadly in Tarrio’s indictment, The New York Times reported Monday that sources who have reviewed the record more in-depth say it contains plans to storm a half-dozen Senate and House office buildings and the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court is situated just across the street from the Capitol.
It is unclear who wrote “1776 Returns.” Neither is it clear exactly why Tarrio had it in his possession; it has been suggested that it was given to Tarrio by a girlfriend. The identity of the person who gave it to Tarrio was, however, revealed to members of the grand jury reviewing his case.
The document reportedly spans nine pages and is divided into multiple parts, titled “Infiltrate,” “Execution,” “Distract,” “Occupy,” and “Sit-In.”
The recommendations it contains include directions to install no fewer than 50 people in each of the seven main federal buildings around the Capitol. Those sent in were expected to look “unsuspecting” and, once securely inside, the plan was then to have “leads and seconds” scout the building for additional entry points.
They were expected to distract security guards when necessary.
When Tarrio received it, the sender told him: “Revolution is more important than anything.”
Prosecutors say Tarrio responded: “That’s what every waking moment consists of, I’m not playing games.”
According to the Times, there were also strategies in the plan to set off fire alarms at nearby businesses and hotels, drawing police focus away from the Capitol. Occupiers were then instructed to lead chants of “No Trump, no America” and “We the people.”
There is also reportedly a segment of the document titled “Patriot Plan” that Times sources said appeared to be marked for public distribution. The “Patriot Plan” would have crowds form at the office buildings around 1 PM, then wait for a “signal” from a “lead” to storm the buildings.
The first breach of the Capitol on Jan. 6 occurred around 12:57 PM. Trump had already begun his remarks at the Ellipse by this point. He took the stage around noon and spoke for about an hour and 10 minutes.
[Related: Tick-tock: A timeline of the insurrection at the Capitol]
Tarrio is the second ringleader of an extremist group to be indicted by prosecutors for charges related to the attack. Ex-Oath Keeper leader, Elmer Stewart Rhodes, was indicted for seditious conspiracy last month.
Prosecutors say Rhodes oversaw an extensive, well-funded, and heavily armed plot to stop the certification of electoral votes on Jan. 6. He has pleaded not guilty and is currently detained ahead of his trial this summer.
As for Tarrio, he was not in Washington on Jan. 6 because he was arrested two days prior for an outstanding warrant following the theft and destruction of a Black Lives Matter banner he took from a prominent Black church in Dec. 2020.
After his arrest, law enforcement released him on Jan. 5, and from there, Tarrio went directly to meet Rhodes in a parking garage in D.C.
According to a motion filed by the government requesting Tarrio remain in jail before trial, prosecutors revealed there was a documentary film crew present at that meeting and at one point, the crew “picked up audio of a person referencing the Capitol.”
The meeting lasted about a half-hour.
While in the parking garage, Tarrio told another individual that he cleared all of the messages on his phone before he was arrested. Tarrio further stated that no one should be able to get into his phone because there were ‘two steps’ to get into it,” the motion states.
Tarrio spent that evening in Baltimore, Maryland, using phones belonging to “associates” to call allies and inform them that his devices were not jeopardized following his arrest.
Sedition Track, a group of online sleuths compiling relevant information on a host of Jan. 6 defendants to assist the FBI and others investigating the attack, noted Monday in clips posted to Twitter that Tarrio’s meeting with Rhodes also included leadership from Latinos for Trump and Vets4Trump.
Pictured in the photos from the garage meeting are Oath Keeper lawyer, Kellye SoRelle, as well as Josh Macias, the founder of Vets4Trump, and Bianca Gracia, President of Latinos for Trump.
That meeting was also attended by Amy Harris, a freelance photographer, who has sued the Jan. 6 Committee to stop them from reviewing her phone metadata, citing a violation of her rights as a photojournalist. Harris has been photographing the Proud Boys for more than a year.
It is unclear if Tarrio will remain in jail in Florida or if he will be transferred to Washington. Presiding over his case Tuesday was U.S. Magistrate Judge Lauren Louis.
According to Tarrio’s original indictment, he was the leader of a plot to obstruct, influence, and impede the joint session on Jan. 6 and prosecutors say, among other evidence, a review of text messages sent by Proud Boys after the attack showed Tarrio’s chilling lack of remorse.
When one member asked Tarrio what they should do after the Capitol was first breached, Tarrio replied: “Do it again.”
