On Thursday, a US court convicted 4 members of the far-right group Proud Boys of conspiring to stir up sedition, for the role they played during the storming of Congress by supporters of former President Donald Trump on January 2021, <>.
In a trial in Washington, D.C., Enrique Tarrio, who previously served as chairman of the organization's board of directors, was convicted along with three members, according to US media.
Tario and four of his top aides (Joseph Biggs, Ethan Nordian, Zachary Reel and Dominic Pezzola) were previously charged with trying to stop congressional certification of Democrat Joe Biden's victory over Republican opponent Donald Trump.
Tario was not in Washington on January 2021, <>, but was accused of directing an operation carried out by members of the Proud Boys to storm Congress.
Tario, Biggs, Nordian and Rell were convicted of conspiracy to stir up to 20 years in prison, but after seven days of deliberations, jury members have not reached a verdict convicting Pezzola on the charge.
The five were convicted of other charges, including obstruction of Congress, obstruction of law enforcement and destruction of government property, and Pezzola of looting government property.
In widely circulated videos, Pezzola is seen using a riot police shield to break a window in the Capitol, the seat of Congress.
The success of federal prosecutors in obtaining convictions for sedition against perpetrators of the Jan. 6 riot would add to the judicial trouble of Trump and his advisers in the Justice Department's investigation into whether they conspired or instigated the storming of the Capitol.
More than 900 people have been arrested in the case of Trump supporters storming the Capitol, but only a few have been charged with conspiracy to stir up sedition.
Last year, Stuart Rhodes, founder of another right-wing group, Oath Keepers, and another leader of it were convicted of conspiring to stir up strife during congressional events.