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On anniversary of US Capitol attack, Proud Boys ex-leader asks Trump for pardon

He was sentenced to 22 years for January 6 attack on charges of seditious conspiracy

Four years after supporters of then-president Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol in a failed bid to thwart certification of the 2020 election result, a mastermind of the effort, Enrique Tarrio, on Monday asked Trump for a full pardon for his actions.

Tarrio, a former leader of the Proud Boys far-right militant group, was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for helping to direct the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol that resulted in injuries to more than 140 police officers and five deaths.

The request, in a letter, came through Tarrio’s lawyer, Nayib Hassan of Miami, two weeks before Trump is due to return to the White House. Trump has said he will consider pardoning many of those convicted in connection with the breach of the Capitol that day, perhaps as early as his first day in office.

On Monday, the new Congress formally certified the results of the 2024 election that returned Trump to power, this time without incident. Inauguration Day is January 20.

Hassan said the request marked the first time Tarrio has asked Trump directly for a pardon. The lawyer said he also has sent the letter to multiple people in Trump's orbit making the case for his client.

"We're making all efforts possible to ensure that this communication goes up to President-elect Trump," Hassan said in an interview.

Trump’s transition team did not respond to a request for comment on Tarrio’s pardon request but reiterated that Trump will consider pardons on a case-by-case basis.

“President Trump will pardon Americans who were denied due process and unfairly prosecuted by the weaponised Department of Justice," said transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.

A source close to Trump's transition team said to expect pardons "for a lot of people, particularly for people who haven't been convicted of anything yet. If you were convicted of assaulting a cop, that's one thing. If you were convicted of trespassing, that's another category."

According to the US Justice Department, 1,583 people have been charged with a crime connected to the siege of the Capitol, with about 1,100 having had their cases fully adjudicated. More than 700 have either served their sentences or were never incarcerated.

During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump frequently referred to the January 6 defendants as patriots who fell victim to what he called a politicised justice system, and he pledged he would pardon many of them.

In an interview with NBC News last month, Trump said there could be "some exceptions" to his pardons if the individuals had acted "radical" or "crazy" during the assault.

Tarrio’s case, in particular, could pose a challenge for Trump. Tarrio was convicted in May 2023 of seditious conspiracy, along with three other members of the Proud Boys.

Prosecutors detailed how he remotely encouraged members who were in Washington on January 6, 2021, to storm the US Capitol to “do what must be done” to stop the certification of the election in Democrat Joe Biden’s favour. Tarrio's 22-year sentence was the longest handed down to a January 6 conspirator.

While Congress was certifying the 2024 election on Monday, advocates and family members of those charged in the attacks gathered at a Washington hotel to demand that all of the January 6 defendants be granted clemency.

Suzzanne Monk, a longtime advocate for those defendants, said she and her colleagues have been having conversations with key people in Trump's orbit.

"We're predicting 100 per cent pardons on Day One, or commutations for everyone to be released on Day One," Monk said.