GOING GODFATHER

DOJ May Use Law Targeting Mafia Against Capitol Rioters: Reuters

“This is something that is being mulled over in the halls of DOJ,” an anonymous official told Reuters.

Officials at the Department of Justice are considering charging Capitol rioters under a law typically used to prosecute members of organized crime, two current and former officials told Reuters. Under the law, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, prosecutors must prove a pattern of criminal activity that rises to the level of racketeering as well as an ongoing threat. The statute was created to go after Mafia leaders and has also been used to prosecute the mastermind of a planned attack on the George Washington Bridge and United Nations. The DOJ reportedly hasn’t made a final decision about whether it will use the statute. More than 170 people, including members of the far-right groups the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, are facing charges for taking part in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.