The Proud Boys might be pathetic, but that doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous.
This has been shown by their deep ties to law enforcement, a terrifying link that was borne out by a recent case in Washington D.C. As per ABC, today a retired police officer named Shane Lamond was convicted of lying to authorities about handing over confidential information to the former Proud Boys national chairman, Enrique Tarrio. The charges were one count of obstruction of justice, and three counts of making false statements. They relate to Lamond letting Tarrio know that a warrant had been issued for his arrest.
The Proud Boys, who were founded by Gavin McInnes, and are known for their weirdly in depth rules about masturbation, may seem like a joke. However, their potent misogyny and general bigotry is made even more worrying by the fact they are seeking street violence, and attempting to train their members in combat. The alt-right organization also played a key role in the Jan 6 storming of the Capitol.
The group refer to themselves as “Western chauvinists,” and are famous for their white supremacist leanings, despite having a small pool of members of color (including Tarrio). Groups like them have also infiltrated U.S law enforcement all over the country, adding to a well known and problematic link between white supremacist groups and American police, a rot that this case reinforces.
Lamond leaked the information to Tarrio while the latter was under investigation for burning a Black Lives Matter banner that had been stolen from a historic black church in D.C. Tarrio was later sentenced to over two decades in prison for his role in the attempted insurrection at the Capitol, after being arrested just prior to the events on Jan. 6 2021.
Lamond’s role at the time of the leak was to monitor potentially violent extremist groups like the Proud Boys when they came to Washington D.C. This meant that he had access to confidential information that would have been useful for groups seeking to avoid detection from law enforcement. Throughout the trial, Lamond denied giving Tarrio any sensitive information.
This assertion was backed up by the Proud Boys member during his testimony as a witness for the retired officer. However, there was plenty of evidence to the contrary, including the fact that during the time Tarrio and Lamond were messaging, the Proud Boys member had been claiming he had a source in the D.C police department. Tarrio now now says that this was a lie. The pair messaged “at least 500 times” on cloud-based messaging services, including over 100 on Telegram.
In texts between Tarrio and Lamond released by the prosecution, the former officer wrote:
“Of course I can’t say it officially, but personally I support you all and don’t want to see your group’s name and reputation dragged through the mud.”
Lamond denied he was a sympathizer of the group, claiming that he considered Tarrio a source and wanted to build a friendly rapport with him. The prosecutors labelled him a “double agent.” The scary thing is that he is undoubtedly one of many, indicating a serious sickness at the heart of American policing.