https://youtu.be/TSffz_bl6zo

>https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-proudboys-leader-idUSKBN29W1PE
>
>Exclusive: Proud Boys leader was ‘prolific’ informer for
>law enforcement
>
>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the Proud
>Boys extremist group, has a past as an informer for federal
>and local law enforcement, repeatedly working undercover for
>investigators after he was arrested in 2012, according to a
>former prosecutor and a transcript of a 2014 federal court
>proceeding obtained by Reuters.
>
>
>In the Miami hearing, a federal prosecutor, a Federal Bureau
>of Investigation agent and Tarrio’s own lawyer described his
>undercover work and said he had helped authorities prosecute
>more than a dozen people in various cases involving drugs,
>gambling and human smuggling.
>
>Tarrio, in an interview with Reuters Tuesday, denied working
>undercover or cooperating in cases against others. “I
>don’t know any of this,” he said, when asked about the
>transcript. “I don’t recall any of this.”
>
>Law-enforcement officials and the court transcript contradict
>Tarrio’s denial. In a statement to Reuters, the former
>federal prosecutor in Tarrio’s case, Vanessa Singh Johannes,
>confirmed that “he cooperated with local and federal law
>enforcement, to aid in the prosecution of those running other,
>separate criminal enterprises, ranging from running marijuana
>grow houses in Miami to operating pharmaceutical fraud
>schemes.”
>
>Tarrio, 36, is a high-profile figure who organizes and leads
>the right-wing Proud Boys in their confrontations with those
>they believe to be Antifa, short for “anti-fascism,” an
>amorphous and often violent leftist movement. The Proud Boys
>were involved in the deadly insurrection at the Capitol
>January 6.
>
>The records uncovered by Reuters are startling because they
>show that a leader of a far-right group now under intense
>scrutiny by law enforcement was previously an active
>collaborator with criminal investigators.
>
>Washington police arrested Tarrio in early January when he
>arrived in the city two days before the Capitol Hill riot. He
>was charged with possessing two high-capacity rifle magazines,
>and burning a Black Lives Matter banner during a December
>demonstration by supporters of former President Donald Trump.
>The D.C. Superior Court ordered him to leave the city pending
>a court date in June.
>
>Though Tarrio did not take part in the Capitol insurrection,
>at least five Proud Boys members have been charged in the
>riot. The FBI previously said Tarrio’s earlier arrest was an
>effort to preempt the events of January 6.
>
>The transcript from 2014 shines a new light on Tarrio’s past
>connections to law enforcement. During the hearing, the
>prosecutor and Tarrio’s defense attorney asked a judge to
>reduce the prison sentence of Tarrio and two co-defendants.
>They had pleaded guilty in a fraud case related to the
>relabeling and sale of stolen diabetes test kits.
>
>The prosecutor said Tarrio’s information had led to the
>prosecution of 13 people on federal charges in two separate
>cases, and had helped local authorities investigate a gambling
>ring.
>
>Tarrio’s then-lawyer Jeffrey Feiler said in court that his
>client had worked undercover in numerous investigations, one
>involving the sale of anabolic steroids, another regarding
>“wholesale prescription narcotics” and a third targeting
>human smuggling. He said Tarrio helped police uncover three
>marijuana grow houses, and was a “prolific” cooperator.
>
>In the smuggling case, Tarrio, “at his own risk, in an
>undercover role met and negotiated to pay $11,000 to members
>of that ring to bring in fictitious family members of his from
>another country,” the lawyer said in court.
>
>In an interview, Feiler said he did not recall details about
>the case but added, “The information I provided to the court
>was based on information provided to me by law enforcement and
>the prosecutor.”
>
>An FBI agent at the hearing called Tarrio a “key
>component” in local police investigations involving
>marijuana, cocaine and MDMA, or ecstasy. The Miami FBI office
>declined comment.
>
>There is no evidence Tarrio has cooperated with authorities
>since then. In interviews with Reuters, however, he said that
>before rallies in various cities, he would let police
>departments know of the Proud Boys’ plans. It is unclear if
>this was actually the case. He said he stopped this
>coordination after December 12 because the D.C. police had
>cracked down on the group.
>
>Tarrio on Tuesday acknowledged that his fraud sentence was
>reduced, from 30 months to 16 months, but insisted that
>leniency was provided only because he and his co-defendants
>helped investigators “clear up” questions about his own
>case. He said he never helped investigate others.
>
>That comment contrasts with statements made in court by the
>prosecutor, his lawyer and the FBI. The judge in the case,
>Joan A. Lenard, said Tarrio “provided substantial assistance
>in the investigation and prosecution of other persons involved
>in criminal conduct.”
>
>As Trump supporters challenged the Republican’s election
>loss in often violent demonstrations, Tarrio stood out for his
>swagger as he led crowds of mostly white Proud Boys in a
>series of confrontations and street brawls in Washington,
>D.C., Portland, Oregon, and elsewhere.
>
>The Proud Boys, founded in 2016, began as a group protesting
>political correctness and perceived constraints on
>masculinity. It grew into a group with distinctive colors of
>yellow and black that embraced street fighting. In September
>their profile soared when Trump called on them to “Stand
>back and stand by.”
>
>Tarrio, based in Miami, became the national chairman of the
>group in 2018.
>
>In November and December, Tarrio led the Proud Boys through
>the streets of D.C. after Trump’s loss. Video shows him on
>December 11 with a bullhorn in front of a large crowd. “To
>the parasites both in Congress, and in that stolen White
>House,” he said. “You want a war, you got one!” The
>crowd roared. The next day Tarrio burned the BLM banner.
>
>Former prosecutor Johannes said she was surprised that the
>defendant she prosecuted for fraud is now a key player in the
>violent movement that sought to halt the certification of
>President Joe Biden.
>
>“I knew that he was a fraudster – but had no reason to
>know that he was also a domestic terrorist,” she said.