Proud Boys charged with seditious conspiracy in DOJ's Jan. 6 investigation
 
 
Five members of the far-right Proud Boys — including former leader Enrique Tarrio — were indicted Monday for seditious conspiracy in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The charges are so far the most serious brought by the Justice Department in its investigation of the attack, The New York Times reports.
The new indictment against Tarrio, Joseph Biggs, Ethan Nordean, Zachary Rehl, and Dominic Pezzola was unsealed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The five men had already been charged with conspiracy and other crimes in an indictment back in March — they pleaded not guilty. It's unclear at the moment what prompted the new charges, the Times notes.
To successfully argue a charge of seditious conspiracy, prosecutors must prove that defendants used force to either overthrow the government or interfere with the execution of federal law, the Times explains.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
 
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
So far, the only other defendants in the Jan. 6 investigation charged with seditious conspiracy are Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes and 10 of his associates.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
- 
 Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariff Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax 
- 
 Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICE Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch 
- 
 Shutdown stalemate nears key pain points Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff 
- 
 Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan ad Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy 
- 
 NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footage NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges 
- 
 Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East Wing Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction 
- 
 Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 more Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters 
- 
 Trump demands millions from his administration Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations 



