Notorious political dirty trickster Roger Stone will have to choose between prison and his longtime friend, Donald Trump, a former federal prosecutor argued on Saturday.
"It was known as F.O.S. — or Friends of Stone — and while its members shifted over time, they were a motley cast of characters," The New York Timesreported Friday. "At least three members of the group chat are now facing charges in connection with the riot at the Capitol in January 2021. They include Owen Shroyer, the right-hand man of the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones; Enrique Tarrio, the onetime chairman of the Proud Boys; and Stewart Rhodes, the leader of the Oath Keepers militia."
The group chat was on the encrypted communications app Signal.
At least two members of the group are cooperating with investigators.
"While little is known about what was said on the chat, the membership list of Friends of Stone, provided to The New York Times by one of its participants, offers a kind of road map to Mr. Stone’s associations, showing their scope and nature in the critical period after the 2020 election. During that time, Mr. Stone was involved with a strikingly wide array of people who participated in efforts to challenge the vote count and keep Mr. Trump in the White House," the newspaper reported. "At least one of Mr. Stone’s Oath Keeper bodyguards, Joshua James, has pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy charges in the Capitol attack and is cooperating with the government’s inquiry. Kellye SoRelle, a lawyer for the Oath Keepers, was part of the Friends of Stone chat as well and is also said to be cooperating with prosecutors in the riot investigation."
Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner suggested that will create a dilemma for Stone while analyzing the case on his "Justice Matters" podcast.
"So this is also a really good development, that people are flipping on Roger Stone, because one day — one day — Roger Stone is either going to prison or he's flipping on Donald Trump," he said.
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