An attorney for one of the Proud Boys, who is fighting a seditious conspiracy case related to the January 6 protests, stated that the Department of Justice (DOJ) disclosed the existence of another government informant.
According to a court filing on Wednesday, the government informed the defense team that a person, who was scheduled to testify on behalf of one of the defendants the following day, had served as a “Confidential Human Source” (CHS) from April 2021 until at least January 2023.
Attorney Carmen Hernandez stated, “During this period of time, the CHS has been in contact via telephone, text messaging and other electronic means with one or more of the counsel for the defense and at least one defendant.”
The court document did not disclose the identity of the informant. However, the informant purportedly participated in prayer gatherings with members of one or more of the defendants’ families and had discussions with one of the defendant’s family members regarding the replacement of one of the defense lawyers, according to the attorney.
Hernandez, who is the legal counsel for Zachary Rehl, submitted a motion that demands the release of all FBI interview reports and DOJ memos pertaining to the monitoring and documentation of the defense team.
BREAKING NEWS:
Defense lawyers in the Proud Boys trial just filed a motion accusing DOJ of utilizing an FBI informant to spy on the defense team for the Proud Boys, as well as activists who attend the J6 prayer vigil.
The informant is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, known by many. pic.twitter.com/guh3kKNguz
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) March 22, 2023
U.S. District Court Judge Tim Kelly initially required the U.S. government to provide a response to the filing by Thursday morning. However, he later extended the deadline until the afternoon and scheduled a hearing on the motion, resulting in the trial’s resumption being postponed until Friday.
The case pertains to Zachary Rehl, along with former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and three other members – Joe Biggs, Ethan Nordean, and Dominic Pezzola. They were charged in federal court with seditious conspiracy and other offenses in connection with the events of January 6, 2021, when a crowd breached the U.S. Capitol and obstructed lawmakers who were in the process of certifying Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.
In the Wednesday filing, Hernandez stated that the defendants are drafting a separate motion to either dismiss the indictment or request an evidentiary hearing. The motion will raise severe and corroborated claims of governmental misconduct regarding the covert infiltration and interference by the government through a confidential human source, which was done at the government’s urging.
