Month: September 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – A Kentucky man pleaded guilty today to assaulting law enforcement during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

            Clayton Ray Mullins, 54, of Magnolia, Kentucky, pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to a felony offense of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers before U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras. Judge Contreras scheduled Mullins to be sentenced on Jan. 17, 2024.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Mullins attended the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C., and afterward joined a crowd walking from the Ellipse to the U.S. Capitol building. Mullins arrived on the West Lawn, between the Capitol and the Capitol Reflecting Pool, and then walked up to the West Plaza, joining hundreds of other rioters. Here, Mullins and his fellow rioters encountered a line of police officers behind a barricade fence. From 2:07 p.m. through approximately 2:28 p.m., Mullins was actively involved with others in pushing against the barricade and the officers in order to advance closer to the Capitol Building. At approximately 2:28 p.m., the rioters prevailed and took over the West Plaza, and the police officers fell back.

            By approximately 4:16 p.m., Mullins had made his way to the Lower West Terrace Archway and began waving other rioters forward to join the press of people pushing to gain access to the Capitol building through the Archway. Mullins then entered the Lower West Terrace Tunnel and joined other rioters attempting to push their way through the Tunnel and into the Capitol building. At about 4:21 p.m., officers inside the Tunnel had pushed the rioters, including Mullins, out and back to the mouth of the Archway. Police officers then established a line at the Archway.

            After exiting the Tunnel, court documents say that Mullins was positioned on the Capitol steps below the Archway. Mullins then leaned over a handrail and made multiple attempts to grab the leg of a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer, who had been knocked to the ground. Eventually, Mullins succeeded, secured his grip on the officer’s leg, and violently pulled on it for at least 16 seconds. Ultimately, the officer was dragged down the steps, where he was further attacked by additional rioters.

            After this attack, another MPD officer who had just been assaulted and dragged down the Capitol steps attempted to climb back up the steps to rejoin the other officers in the Archway.

            As the officer did this, Mullins and a co-defendant pushed the officer back down the steps and into the crowd.

            A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky.

            The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington and Louisville Field Offices, which identified Mullins as BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #131 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,146 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 398 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – An Ohio man has been arrested on felony and misdemeanor charges, including assaulting law enforcement, related to his actions during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

            Benjamin Michael Shuler, 28, of Grove City, Ohio, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers, both felony offenses. In addition to the felonies, Shuler is charged with various misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct in a Capitol building; and engaging in an act of physical violence on Capitol grounds or buildings.

            Shuler was arrested today in Lancaster, Ohio, and made his initial appearance in the Southern District of Ohio.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, at approximately 4:48 p.m., a police line established on the northwest stairs to the Capitol began to descend the steps to clear the area of protesters, which included a man later identified as Shuler. As police began to clear the area, Shuler resisted the police line and began pushing a Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) officer’s riot shield several times and pressed his body into the shield.

            At approximately 4:53 p.m., as the police line attempted to advance down the steps, Shuler continued to resist and pressed his body into an additional unidentified police officer’s riot shield and shoved it back several times. As officers continued to move the police line down the stairs, Shuler resisted police and violently pushed an officer’s riot shield several times with significant force.

            At approximately 4:57 p.m., as the police line approached the bottom steps, a police officer’s body-worn camera footage depicts Shuler as he gestured to others to meet him in front of the police line and again resisted police by pushing back and swiping at an unidentified officer’s riot shield.

            This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Cincinnati and Washington Field Offices, which identified Shuler as BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #435 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by FBI Chicago, the U.S. Capitol Police, the Montgomery County Police Department, and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,146 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 398 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

            A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – The former national chairman of the Proud Boys was sentenced today for seditious conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election. 

            Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, 39, of Miami, Florida, was sentenced to 22 years in prison and 36 months of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly. His is the longest sentence, to date, related to the January 6 attack on the Capitol.

            “On January 6th, 2021, the United States Capitol was attacked, 140 law enforcement officers defending those inside were assaulted, and the peaceful transfer of power to a newly elected government – a cornerstone of our democracy – was interrupted,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department proved in court that the Proud Boys played a central role in setting the January 6th attack on our Capitol into motion. Over the past week, four members of the Proud Boys received sentences that reflect the danger their crimes pose to our democracy. Today, the leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, learned that the consequence of conspiring to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power is 22 years in federal prison.”

            “Today’s sentencing demonstrates that those who attempted to undermine the workings of American democracy will be held criminally accountable,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI will always protect those who peacefully exercise their First Amendment rights. But we will never condone the actions of those who break our laws, and we will continue to work with federal prosecutors to ensure those perpetrators are held responsible.”

            “No organization put more boots on the ground at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, than the Proud Boys, and they were at the forefront of every major breach of the Capitol’s defenses, leading the on-the-ground efforts to storm the seat of government,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew M. Graves. “The leaders of the Proud Boys and the leaders of the Oath Keepers, who conspired before, during, and after the siege of the Capitol to use force against their own government to prevent the peaceful transfer of power, have now been held accountable.” 

            “Today’s significant sentence of Enrique Tarrio is a result of extensive work from multiple FBI field offices across the country,” said David Sundberg, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office. “The 22 years-long sentence for his numerous crimes, including seditious conspiracy, is a clear sign that the FBI will work as long as it takes to uphold the Constitution and our oath to the American people. The FBI and our partners will continue to hold accountable those who engaged in violence and criminal activity on January 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol.”

            On May 4, 2023, a jury found Tarrio and three other co-defendants guilty of multiple felonies, including seditious conspiracy, for their actions before and during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th.

            Previously sentenced in this matter were co-defendants Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola. Nordean was sentenced to 18 years in prison, Biggs was sentenced to 17 years, Rehl was sentenced to 15 years, and Pezzola was sentenced to 10 years.

            According to court documents and evidence presented during the trial, prior to the events of Jan. 6, 2021, Tarrio created a special chapter of the Proud Boys known as the “Ministry of Self-Defense,” which included co-defendants Nordean, Biggs, and Rehl. As part of this group, these defendants conspired to prevent, hinder, and delay the certification of the Electoral College vote and to oppose by force the authority of the government of the United States.

            In the days leading to January 6th, Tarrio and other leaders of the Ministry of Self-Defense hand-selected members of the organization, including co-defendant Dominic Pezzola, to serve as “rally boys” during the attack on the Capitol. To prepare for the attack, Tarrio and the other leaders established a chain of command, chose a time and place for their attack, and intentionally recruited others who would follow their top-down leadership and who were prepared to engage in physical violence if necessary.

            On January 6th, the group began their assault that day at 10:00 a.m. when Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, and others marched an assembled group of nearly 200 individuals away from speeches at the Ellipse and directly toward the Capitol. At 2:11 p.m., Pezzola smashed open a window, allowing the first rioters to enter the Capitol as Biggs and those with him entered close behind. Court documents say that Nordean, Biggs, Rehl, and the men they recruited and led participated in every consequential breach at the Capitol that day.

            As the events of January 6th unfolded, Tarrio, who was monitoring the attack from afar, posted encouraging messages to his tens of thousands of social media followers, including: “Proud of my boys and my country” and “Don’t f****** leave.” Tarrio privately claimed credit for the riot at the Capitol, telling Proud Boys senior leadership, “Make no mistake . . . we did this.” On January 7th, Tarrio addressed the Ministry of Self-Defense members, telling them he was “proud of y’all.”

            During the hearing, U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly found that Tarrio’s conduct constituted an official act of terrorism and applied an enhancement to his final sentence.

            This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, and the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The charges in the investigation are the result of significant cooperation between agents and staff across numerous FBI Field Offices and law enforcement agencies.

            In the 31 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,106 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 350 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov