Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders, jailed over January 6, are freed by President Trump
Former Proud Boys leader Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio, who was jailed for 22 years for seditious conspiracy over the January 6 riots, has been released from prison after being pardoned by President Donald Trump.
Tarrio, who warned of a second US civil war, was handed the longest sentence for any Capitol Riots defendant for his role in planning the insurrection that sought to stop Joe Biden’s 2020 victory being certified.
Elmer Stewart Rhodes, leader of the militant Oath Keepers group, has also been freed from prison after his 18-year sentence was commuted.
President Trump has frequently referred to those jailed over January 6 as “hostages” and on his first day back in the White House, he issued a sweeping clemency order, granting pardons to more than 1,500 defendants.
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Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio
“No quarter. Raise the black flag,” Tarrio had raged online in November 2020, angry at Mr Biden’s election win. He wanted Mr Trump to remain in office, so he and others hatched a plan, one that culminated in the storming of the Capitol.
Now Tarrio has received a full pardon from President Trump and has been released from prison.
“This marks a pivotal moment in our client’s life, and it symbolises a turning point for our nation,” Nayib Hassan said in a statement.
“We are optimistic for the future, as we now turn the page on this chapter, embracing new possibilities and opportunities.”
Read more: How four Proud Boys secretly planned to overthrow American democracy
Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio in Portland in 2019. Pic: AP
Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, Ethan Nordean and Dominic Pezzola
Fellow Proud Boys Biggs, Rehl and Nordean were put on trial alongside Tarrio charged with conspiring to oppose the lawful transfer of presidential power by force (seditious conspiracy) and a number of other charges in relation to January 6.
US attorney Jason McCullough said in the days after the 2020 election the defendants had started “calling for action, calling for war, if their favoured candidate was not elected”.
The prosecution revealed what they said was a secret Proud Boys internal plan entitled “1776 Returns”, an incendiary document that laid out plans to take over buildings on January 6.
Proud Boys Joseph Biggs (left) and Ethan Nordean on January 6. Pic: AP
Biggs, Rehl and Nordean all played leadership roles in the Proud Boys and received some of the longest prison sentences of those sentenced over the riots: Nordean with 18 years, Biggs with 17 years and Rehl getting 15 years.
Pezzola, who was accused of assaulting former Capitol Police Officer Mark Ode by stealing his riot shield and using it to smash a window at the Capitol, was sentenced to 10 years.
All four have had their sentences commuted.
Proud Boys Zachary Rehl (left) and Ethan Nordean on January 6. Pic: AP
Elmer Stewart Rhodes
Rhodes, the founder of the militant Oath Keepers group, was convicted of seditious conspiracy.
While he did not enter the US Capitol building, he was convicted for plotting to use force against Congress to prevent the election certification.
Prosecutors at trial showed the jury encrypted messages, recordings and surveillance videos where Rhodes spoke about the prospect of a “bloody” civil war, and warned group members they may have to “rise up in insurrection” to defeat Mr Biden if Mr Trump did not act.
The former army paratrooper, who wears an eye patch after accidentally shooting himself in the face with his own gun, was jailed for 18 years but has now had his sentence commuted.
Like Tarrio, he also has now been freed from prison.
Oath Keepers militia founder Stewart Rhodes. Pic: Reuters
Kelly Meggs
Meggs, an Oath Keepers “chapter leader” from Florida was convicted of seditious conspiracy and other crimes.
His wife Connie was also charged and convicted in a separate trial.
He was jailed for 12 years but had his sentence commuted by Mr Trump. His wife, like most of the January 6 defendants, received a pardon.
Kenneth Harrelson and Jessica Watkins
Oath Keepers associates Harrelson and Watkins went on trial alongside Rhodes and Kelly Meggs on criminal charges of seditious conspiracy.
While the jury acquitted them of that charge, they were convicted of a number of other crimes.
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Watkins, a transgender woman who during the trial spoke openly about the struggles she faced with her identity while serving in the military, was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison, while Harrelson received four years.
Both had their sentences commuted.
The scene at the US Capitol on January 6. Pic: AP
Roberto Minuta, Edward Vallejo, Joseph Hackett and David Moerschel
Minuta, Vallejo, Hackett and Moerschel were a group of Oath Keepers who were put and trial and convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Their sentences – four-and-a-half years for Minuta, three years for Moerschel and Vallejo and 42 months for Hackett – were commuted by President Trump.
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A state of emergency has been declared in South Carolina as wildfires caused by dry and gusty conditions have forced people to evacuate some areas.
More than 175 fires covered 6.6 square miles in the state on Sunday as the National Weather Service warned of an increased risk of blazes in the region.
The number of fires was down to 163 by early Monday, the state’s forestry commission said.
South Carolina governor Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency on Sunday to support the wildfire response effort and a state-wide burning ban is in effect.
People in eight neighbourhoods were forced to evacuate as several fires raged in the state’s Horry County, officials said.
Soldiers used two Blackhawk helicopters to drop water 600 gallons at a time on the blazes, the South Carolina National Guard said on Sunday.
Meanwhile, firefighters made progress containing a fire in Carolina Forest, where people had been ordered to evacuate several neighbourhoods, according to Horry County Fire Rescue.
Footage showed some people running down the street as smoke filled the sky.
However, Horry County Fire Rescue announced by late Sunday that Carolina Forest evacuees could return home.
The Red Cross of South Carolina said approximately 135 Carolina Forest residents had taken shelter in a county recreation centre.
Smoke is seen rising from fires in Horry County. Pic: AP/Horry County Fire Rescue
The fire in the area had burned 2.5 square miles as of Sunday evening, the South Carolina Forestry Commission estimated.
No structures had succumbed to the blaze and no injuries had been reported as of Sunday morning, officials said.
It came as fire crews were working to contain multiple wildfires burning in four forests across North Carolina.
The largest covered around 0.6 square miles and burned in Uwharrie National Forest – about 50 miles east of Charlotte.
The North Carolina Forest Service said on Sunday that it had been made progress on the fire, reaching about one-third containment.
People flee an area in Myrtle Beach. Pic: AP
The small southwestern town of Tryon in Polk County, North Carolina, had urged some residents to evacuate on Saturday as a fire spread rapidly there.
The evacuations remained in effect on Sunday.
A decision on whether to lift the evacuation orders was expected to be made on Monday after intentional burns are set to try to stop the fire from spreading.
That fire had burned about 0.8 square miles as of Sunday evening, with 0% containment, according to the Polk County Emergency Management and Fire Marshal’s office.
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A helicopter drops water to help contain a fire in the Carolina Forest area. Pic: AP
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The North Carolina Forest Service was conducting water drops and back-burning operations on the ground and residents should expect a lot of smoke during those operations, officials said.
It comes as at least six active fires were burning in Georgia on Sunday, with nearly 5.8 miles burned in a seven-day span that brought the region gusty winds and low humidity, according to a Georgia Forestry Commission fire summary.
Officials have not said what caused any of the fires.
The dry and gusty conditions fuelling the fires are expected to fade as a cold front pushes out the dry air mass over the southeast of the US and brings rain by Tuesday, the National Weather Service said.
The convergence of warmth, dry air and gusty winds is not inconsistent with the season’s La Niña weather phenomenon, which is associated with warmer, drier winters in the Carolinas, according to North Carolina State University.
The blazes come after two wildfires in Los Angeles killed 29 people and scorched thousands of acres across 24 days.
More than 18,000 structures were damaged or destroyed in the deadly Eaton and Palisades blazes, which swept across California in January.
Cryptocurrency prices have jumped after Donald Trump revealed he would like Bitcoin and other lesser-traded tokens to be in a new US strategic crypto reserve.
He said his January executive order on digital assets would create a stockpile of currencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana and Cardano (ADA).
The names had not previously been announced.
The American president said in a post on Truth Social: “A US Crypto Reserve will elevate this critical industry after years of corrupt attacks by the Biden Administration, which is why my Executive Order on Digital Assets directed the Presidential Working Group to move forward on a Crypto Strategic Reserve that includes XRP, SOL, and ADA.”
“I will make sure the US is the Crypto Capital of the World.”
“And, obviously, BTC and ETH, as other valuable Cryptocurrencies, will be at the heart of the Reserve,” he said in a follow-up post. “I also love Bitcoin and Ethereum!”
Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value, rose over 11% to $94,164 after Sunday’s announcement.
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, was up around 13% at $2,516.
XRP surged 33% while the token tied to Solana jumped 25%. Cardano’s coin soared more than 60%.
Bitcoin was trading up around 20% from last week’s lows.
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on cryptocurrencies in January. Pic: Reuters
The total cryptocurrency market rose about 10%, or more than $300bn (£238bn), in the hours since the announcement, according to cryptocurrency data and analysis company CoinGecko.
This is the first time Mr Trump has specified his support for a crypto “reserve” rather than a “stockpile”. While the former assumes actively buying crypto in regular installments, a stockpile would not sell any of the crypto currently held by the US government.
Mr Trump is hosting the first White House Crypto Summit on Friday, and investors will be watching closely for more clues about the direction of the reserve plans.
His family have also launched their own coins, including his wife Melania.
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Mr Trump first introduced the idea of a Bitcoin stockpile, which would “keep 100% of all the Bitcoin the US government currently holds or acquires into the future” last summer at major industry conference Bitcoin 2024 in Nashville.
After his re-election to the White House in November, there were more calls for a strategic Bitcoin reserve, helping to send the price of the flagship cryptocurrency to new all-time highs.
Under his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, regulators cracked down on the industry in an attempt to protect Americans from fraud and money laundering.
Under Mr Trump, the Securities and Exchange Commission has withdrawn investigations into several crypto companies and dropped a lawsuit against Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the US.
But in recent weeks, crypto prices have fallen sharply, with some of the biggest digital currencies erasing nearly all of the gains made after Mr Trump’s election win triggered excitement across the industry.
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