FALLING APART

Leaked Telegram Messages Reveal Bitter Infighting Among Proud Boys: ‘Traitors Are Everywhere’

Members have been shaken by the number of arrests in the aftermath of the Capitol riot, as well as revelations about leader Enrique Tarrio.

At least six local chapters of the extreme far-right Proud Boys group are rupturing with the national organization over a bitter fallout from the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, according to The New York Times. The newspaper obtained leaked Telegram messages from the St. Louis branch of the Proud Boys, which announced: “This group needs new leadership and a new direction... The fame we’ve attained hasn’t been worth it.” Members have been shaken by the number of arrests in the wake of the Capitol riot, as well as revelations that Enrique Tarrio, the Proud Boys leader, once worked as an informant for law enforcement. The Alabama chapter of the Proud Boys announced on Telegram: “We reject and disavow the proven federal informant, Enrique Tarrio, and any and all chapters that choose to associate with him.” One participant in the chat wrote: “Traitors are everywhere, everywhere.” More than 300 people have been charged in the Capitol riot, with least 26 tied to the Proud Boys or Oath Keepers.