Proud Boys extremist group leader Enrique Tarrio previously worked as an informant for law enforcement at the federal and local levels, according to a report from Reuters.
Tarrio began working undercover for authorities following his arrest in 2012, according to a federal court proceeding transcript and a former prosecutor.
In the transcript, Tarrio’s attorney and a FBI agent said Tarrio helped law enforcement on drug, gambling, and human trafficking cases. His work reportedly led to the arrests of more than a dozen people.
During the hearing, an FBI agent said Tarrio was a “key component” in local drug investigations in Miami, Florida.
Tarrio denied the informant work in an interview with the outlet on Tuesday (January 26) saying, “I don’t know any of this,” and “I don’t know any of this.”
The former federal prosecutor who worked on Tarrio’s case, Vanessa Singh Johannes, confirmed Tarrio’s involvement as an informant, stating that “he cooperated with local and federal law enforcement, to aid in the prosecution of those running other, separate criminal enterprises, ranging from running marijuana grow houses in Miami to operating pharmaceutical fraud schemes.”
Authorities charged him with gun possession on January 4, after they found two high-capacity rifle magazines. Tarrio was also arrested for burning a Black Lives Matter flag in December. He was ordered to leave the city by the D.C. Superior Court until his June court date.
Tarrio wasn’t present during the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol, but officials have already arrested at least five Proud Boys members for their involvement in the attack.
Johannes told the outlet she was surprised by Tarrio’s involvement with leading the Proud Boys. “I know that he was a fraudster – but had no reason to know that he was also a domestic terrorist,” she said.
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