Authorities arrested two organizers of the far-right group Proud Boys, accusing them of conspiracy in a new criminal charge opened on Friday. Prosecutors say the men used paramilitary equipment, portable radios and encrypted messaging apps to coordinate with other Proud Boys before and during the attack.
Authorities have indicted Zach Rehl, 35, of Pennsylvania, and Charles Donohoe, 33, of North Carolina, and said they are both presidents of the local chapters of the Proud Boys. They were appointed as co-conspirators on a new criminal charge that also charges two other Proud Boys leaders: Joseph Biggs, an Army veteran and self-styled Proud Boys organizer who was arrested in January, and Ethan Nordean, a member of the Proud Boys leadership group known as Elders, and also a president of its local chapter. Nordean was indicted earlier this month.
Prosecutors said the four defendants participated in an encrypted chat with at least 60 other people during the attack, and some used programmed portable radios to communicate in real time.
The Proud Boys, a nationalist group described as “Western Chauvinists”, vocally supported former President Trump, and police and former members said Trump encouraged his actions after telling the group to “back off and stand still” in a debate presidential election in September.
With the arrests of Donohoe and Rehl, federal prosecutors have already charged at least 16 Capitol protesters who, according to them, in court documents, were associated with the Proud Boys.
Prosecutors described the defendants’ social media posts in the fall, which indicated that they believed the election was stolen from Trump.
On November 5, Biggs posted on social media: “It’s time for the fucking War if they steal this shit.”
Later that month, Rehl wrote, “Hopefully, firing squads are for traitors who are trying to steal the election of the American people.”
Court documents show that the men started planning a trip to Washington and started collecting collective funds to pay for expenses such as “protective equipment and communications” and “travel expenses for upcoming patriotic events”. A travel expense campaign raised more than $ 5,500 donations between December 30th and January 4th.
Prosecutors said that at different times, all four defendants reiterated the message that group members should avoid using the Proud Boys’ signature colors, black and yellow. The government said that in doing so, they were “planning to escape detection by law enforcement”.
The day before the attack, prosecutors said, a new encrypted message channel entitled “Boots on the Ground” was created for communications by members of the Proud Boys who were in DC, which included more than 60 users, including Nordean, Biggs, Rehl and Donohoe.
The night before the attack, someone posted a message asking members to meet at the Washington Monument at 10 am on January 6. The message said: “The details will be presented at the pre-meeting!”
Biggs wrote in an encrypted chat that he just spoke to the president of the Proud Boys. “We have a plan,” he said.
On the day of the attack, prosecutors said, Nordean, Biggs, Rehl and Donohoe were part of a crowd that dismounted and broke into several police barricades and entered the United States Capitol.
Nordean and Biggs used a megaphone to direct the group, prosecutors said, and several men in the group, including Biggs and Rehl, held walkie-talkie-style communication devices. Biggs and Rehl entered the Capitol through a door that was opened by a different member of the Proud Boys, Dominic Pezzola, prosecutors said.
In a video, prosecutors say Biggs can be seen entering the Capitol less than 20 seconds after a door was breached by the crowd. In the video, he said, “This is amazing!”
After the attack, the four defendants celebrated on social media and in encrypted chat messages, prosecutors said.
Rehl posted a message that said, “I am very proud of what we achieved yesterday, but we need to start planning and we are starting to plan for a Biden presidency.”
Donohoe said: “We broke into the Capitol unarmed.” He added: “And we assume you are unarmed.”
The four defendants were indicted on six counts of crimes, including conspiracy, as well as charges related to obstruction of an official process, obstruction of law enforcement, destruction of government property and disorderly conduct in restricted areas.
More than 20 defendants facing federal charges in the Capitol riot have so far been accused of conspiracy, including ten members of the extremist group The Oath Keepers, who were indicted as co-conspirators and accused of coordinating before and during the attack.