Capitol Riot

Ex-Proud Boys leader looks to ‘grow' as experts believe pardons will embolden group

What's next for the Proud Boys? Enrique Tarrio says he's looking forward to spending time with his boys and his family – but an expert on extremism says the sweeping pardons could serve to encourage groups like them.

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Enrique Tarrio was greeted by his family, fellow Proud Boys and a crush of reporters at Miami International Airport on Wednesday.

Two days ago, the 42-year-old Cuban American was released from federal prison in Louisiana, where he was at the beginning of a 22-year sentence for seditious conspiracy.

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"I love my family, and I'm thankful for President Trump," Tarrio told reporters on Wednesday.

Tarrio was convicted of orchestrating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, although he wasn’t in Washington D.C. for the attack itself.

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"Like him or love him, it’s promises made, promises kept," Tarrio said of Trump from his home in Miami.

Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman from Miami who was serving 22 years in federal prison after he was convicted of seditious conspiracy in relation to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, arrived back in South Florida.

The Anti-Defamation League defines the Proud Boys as a “right-wing extremist group” that “has actively pursued violence and intimidation as part of its agenda against 'Antifa' and other perceived enemies."

"We make sure we come out once a month and drink beer with the boys and talk crap," Tarrio said, describing what the Proud Boys do.

And he had choice words for those who call them a hate group.

"I’m gonna tell them (expletive) you, because the truth is, I don’t care how they want or what they think," Tarrio said.

The Center on Extremism says the sweeping pardons may serve to embolden the group – and Miami’s local chapter is set to play a big role.

"Miami is a bit of a hot spot, so to speak, in that even with this march that occurred on Inauguration Day, we saw that it was led by a group of Proud Boys from one of the chapters based in Miami," said Ben Popp, an investigative researched from the Center on Extremism.

As for what’s next for Tarrio himself: "I’m going to enjoy my family, I’m gonna grow with my boys, I’m just gonna be me."

Trump said he thought the sentences handed down were “ridiculous and excessive" – a sentiment Tarrio agreed with, although he did say he did not condone the people who put their hands on police.

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