Proud Boys leader arrested, accused of destroying D.C. church's Black Lives Matter sign
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio was arrested Monday and accused of destroying a Black Lives Matter sign at a historic Black church in Washington, D.C., last month.
Tarrio, chairman of the far-right, all-male self-described group of "Western chauvinists," was taken into custody on suspicion of destruction of property after the incident during a pro-Trump rally Dec. 12 in downtown Washington, police said in a statement.
The city's oldest Black house of worship, Asbury United Methodist Church, said last month that a Black Lives Matter sign was removed from its building and set on fire.
Tarrio, 36, who lives in Miami, was arrested upon entering the city Monday and found to have two high-capacity magazines, police said. He faces an additional gun charge, police said.
More pro-Trump protests are expected in Washington on Wednesday, plans that prompted the mobilization of the National Guard ahead of possible violence.
Separately Monday, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church sued Tarrio and the Proud Boys in connection with the destruction of a Black Lives Matter sign during the same Dec. 12 pro-Trump rally.
In a complaint filed in D.C. Superior Court, the church accused Tarrio and the group's members of "engaging in acts of terror and vandalizing church property in an effort to intimidate the Church and silence its support for racial justice."
Eight unidentified members of the Proud Boys are also named in the suit.
The incident occurred the night of Dec. 12 after an event that featured right-wing figures like conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn.
A widely circulated video showed several people destroying a Black Lives Matter sign in front of the church, which was founded in 1872 and hosted Frederick Douglass' 1895 funeral.
In the suit, attorneys for the church alleged that five to eight members of the group leaped over its iron fence, broke the zip ties that held the plastic Black Lives Matter sign in place and joined "in the celebration of the sign's destruction."
In the incident at Asbury, the church's senior pastor said pro-Trump supporters took a Black Lives Matter sign from its walls and "literally burned it in the street."
Metropolitan's attorneys said Tarrio "conspired" with other Proud Boys to plan and promote "violent" events throughout the summer and fall, including on Dec. 12.
The suit cited "countless" messages on social media and other platforms that appeared to encourage members to "buy ammo," "clean your guns" and "keep our enemies awake. Tonight we become nightmares."
The Proud Boys didn't respond to a request for comment Monday. In a post on the social media site Parler, Tarrio said: "You can't put an idea in chains. You can't sue it." He added that the "armor of God protects me."
Last month, Tarrio told local news outlets that he was responsible for burning one of the signs.
"I was the one that lit it on fire," he told DCist/WAMU. Tarrio said he'd been angered to learn that authorities were investigating the incidents as potential hate crimes.
On a podcast affiliated with the Proud Boys, Tarrio added that he was speaking out against the wishes of his attorney and wasn't ashamed to admit that he burned the sign because it symbolizes a "racist movement."
A police spokesman said Monday that the investigations are still active.
The pro-Trump events this week are expected after Trump last week called for a "wild protest" Wednesday, when a joint session of Congress will announce the official winner of the election.
Mayor Muriel Bowser urged residents Monday to stay away from downtown and not to "engage with demonstrators who come to our city seeking confrontation."
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How is the militarism and violence from these guys - or from Antifa - helping anything?
It's not. IMO anyone at tomorrow's rally is looking for trouble.
autocrat calls for a protest. national guard called up. armed rwnj demonstrators. I'm really liking the possibilities.
I have to agree with the both of you,
I think that's an important question. It seems many people only oppose militant garb or aggressive actions when they disagree with the politics of the actor.
How many of them were arrested with large capacity magazines?
I'm NOT.
YOU are the one that compared the BLM and ANTIFA protestors to the MAGA Proud Boys protestors.
Anti-fa has nothing to do with this.
I only see tRump supporting white supremacists here.
Well, apparently Trump believes a YUGE turnout will somehow overturn the actual real election results.
And he's put out the idea that it will be violent (and his supporters notice..)
He's stated that if he looses the election there will be widespread violence...
house him in general population and disable a few security cameras. buh-bye radical right wacko.
Put him in orange and I guarantee that the prison population would not look at him as a 'proud boy'.
There are many white supremacist gangs that exist in prison so he very well might be seen as a hero to some and be provided protection by other piece of shit Nazi criminals.
On the other hand, there are Latin Kings, Mexican Mafia, Blood, Crips and the NAB (Native America Brotherhood among many other non white prison gangs.
There isn't any safe place.
Another proud cut boy being an ass.
Faces additional gun charge, now that is important information.
Shows me that their calls to smuggle arms into the capitol were true and they are following through.
A nice payback would be that he has to redo the sign.
Hmmmm....I have a conspiracy theory forming in my head.
The gun show at the Little Rock State fair grounds were burglarized the other night. The police think it was a planned effort by more than one person. With this rally supposed to happen tomorrow and Tarrio facing gun charges...I wonder...
IIRC, Washington has very strict laws-- and they are intent on enforcing them.
(Not a very smart move to try to smuggle any sort of illegal weapon into the District)
A felon facing a gun charge.
Seems he's been a busy felon.
In 2013, Tarrio, also known as Henry Tarrio Jr , was convicted of two class C, one class D and one class E felonies for stealing and reselling $1.2 million worth of diabetes test strips from Abbott Labs, and served 16 months in federal prison. Court records show that he was released in December 2014 with two years probation, and ordered to pay restitution for the full $1.2 million.
I'm sure that he's paid the $1.2 million back. /s
It is sad that Washington DC has become such a foul city. Here we have somebody who is immediately arrested for destroying a fucking BLM sign and at the same time the wife and newborn daughter of Sen Josh Hawley was terrorized in their home by antifa without any protection or justice from the DC police. We also can't expect a fair verdict from a DC jury.
It is truly a lawless leftist district. Another tragedy in the era of the left.
Thanks to tRump.
Instead of draining the swamp, tRump and his criminal enterprise administration have created a cesspool.
The proud boys, who this piece are about, are a white supremacist group that supports tRump. What are you talking about?
Was that the impression you got the last time you were there?
(Do you think its actually changed so much from your previous visits?)
Where did they tear the sign down from Vic?
Oh, the front of a Church you say? After jumping over a fence your say?
Really Vic? That was happening at the same time. Well gee, maybe if the DC Police weren't having to deal with the Proud Boys, they could have been outside of Hawley's house monitoring a peaceful protest.
Then the dumb fucker shouldn't have committed a federal crime in DC.
Oh and BTW, why not?
Unfounded delusional proclamations.
The far right extremists who would like to perpetrate violence are waiting for a signal from Trump. Although I think he would like to see some head bashing on his behalf, I dont think he will openly signal for it.
Correct. That's not his style (he won't publically condone violence).
What he does is put ideas into the (mentally deficient) heads of his supporters.
So he'd never say something like:
Go to D.C. and have violent demonstrations. Shoot all the leftists!
Because then it would be obvious he's directly advocating violence.
Rather what he does is plant the idea of violence in their heads..which sets them off. (Without ever saying anything that would be seen as advocating violence.
Typically it might be something like:
If I lose the election, there will be violent demonstrations throughout the country! Like we've never seen before!
Actually using the word "leftists" is not typical of Trump.
Rather, to Trump and his typical ass-kissers, 10 out of every 9 demonstrators-- no matter how peaceful-- are all...members of Antifa!
Let's see. BLM and antifa destroy and vandalize and loot entire businesses and are not prosecuted. This man burns a sign and gets the book thrown at him. You call that justice?
Link?
But you conveniently failed to mention that he also faces gun charges.
And BTW-- what do you mean by "throw the book at him"?
What, specifically, have they done to him so far..that you consider "throwing the book at him"?
(Curious minds want to know!
)
He also an ex felon...Gun charge not a good thing for him.
I've been following this story pretty close. I haven't seen anything about them doing that at tghis rally. (In fact, so far I haven't seen evidence that they are currently even protesting in D,C> (Your assertion seemsfalse...well, maybe they'll come to DoC. tomorrow?)