Revealed: Proud Boys leader had 'regular contact' with D.C. cop for 15 months before J6

The leader of the far-right Proud Boys revealed at his trial text messages showing "regular contact" with a Metropolitan Police officer in Washington, D.C. in the 15 months before the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, reportedThe Washington Post on Friday.

"Enrique Tarrio, then chairman of the far-right extremist group, repeatedly shared outlines of members’ plans in D.C. and elsewhere at the request of Shane Lamond, a 22-year veteran of the D.C. police department, according to text exchanges read by Tarrio’s defense in his trial on seditious conspiracy charges with four other Proud Boys leaders," reported Spencer S. Hsu. "Tarrio argues that his relationship with Lamond showed there was no Proud Boys conspiracy to oppose police or federal authority, or plan to disrupt Congress’s confirmation of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory on Jan. 6. Exchanges highlighted by the defense show Lamond forwarded his information to his D.C. police command, a Virginia State Police contact, and even U.S. Capitol Police."

This comes after prior reports in February first exposed that Tarrio had been fed information from the authorities. However, according to the report, this legal defense has serious roadblocks.

"Prosecutors say the bulk of the exchanges occurred long before the alleged conspiracy, triggered by Donald Trump’s call in mid-December 2020 for supporters enraged by his false and inflammatory claims that the presidential election was stolen to attend a 'wild' rally in Washington as Congress met," said the report. "U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly has previously said in court that other conversations between the officer and Tarrio cited by prosecutors revealed a 'closeness' and 'inappropriateness' that undercut Tarrio’s defense. The exchanges, the judge said, show how much the then-head of intelligence for the D.C. police was sharing with Tarrio, even as prosecutors allege Tarrio was hiding their actual intentions, particularly after a Proud Boys member was stabbed in Washington following another pro-Trump rally on Dec. 12, 2020."

The Proud Boys are a self-styled "Western Chauvinist" group infamous for their violent street brawls against political opponents. They were heavily involved in the planning for the January 6 attack, with some of their leaders being charged with seditious conspiracy.

Some of the Proud Boys figures on trial hope to call former President Donald Trump to the stand in their defense, claiming that he instructed them to carry out the attack. Some legal experts are skeptical this strategy will benefit them.

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