1/6 Insurrection Investigation

[Rick Plant]

Don Trump Jr. testimony will 'speed along' the Jan 6th investigation: legal expert

Appearing on MSNBC's "Katie Phang Show," Florida State Attorney Dave Aronberg said no one should expect much in the way of revelations when Don Trump Jr. sits down with investigators working with the House Jan 6th riot committee, but his appearance will help speed up the possibility of criminal referrals.

Speaking with host about Trump Jr's imminent appearance, the attorney told Phang, "Katie, I don't think we should expect too much from Don Jr.'s testimony even if he's appearing voluntarily, and that's a good thing, he could still enjoy the 5th Amendment protection and I expect his to invoke the 5th throughout his testimony."

"I think the good thing about this testimony is that it speeds along the investigation," he continued. "They don't have to go to court to get it, and this could ensure they come with up with a report and even a referral to DOJ well before the midterm elections. But if we are counting on any real revelations to come from Donald Trump Jr. in his testimony, I think his expectations are too high."

"What is the point?" host Phang asked. "If he is going to invoke the 5th, there is going to be no value in that."

"This is going to be a full investigation," he explained. "You have to bring in the person who sent text messages to Mark Meadows showing that the big lie was orchestrated in advance. These text messages were sent from Donald Trump Jr.'s phone, days before the votes were counted. This undermines the whole thing with election fraud in the big lie. That is why you have to bring him in, even knowing that he is probably going to use the 5th amendment."

Watch below:

[Rick Plant]

Florida Proud Boys 'cleaning house' after FBI affidavit suggests their members are government informants: report

After the arrest of Florida Proud Boy Barry Bennet Ramey, 38, for his participating in the Jan. 6. Capitol riot, an FBI affidavit in connection to his case states that "multiple confidential human sources" have provided information, including a "master list" of Proud Boys operating locally in Florida, the Miami New Times reports.

Speaking to the New Times, a Miami Proud Boy said that the far-right group has deleted Ramey from all Proud Boys communication channels and is now clearing out its online chat rooms in an effort to erase its digital footprint. It's also kicking out a bunch of members from its ranks.

"We took [Ramey] out of every chat as of yesterday," the Miami Proud Boy said late last week. "We're cleaning house. We have a list of disavowed members who some chapters are keeping around, and we're getting rid of everybody."

Ramey has been charged with impeding and assaulting a federal law enforcement officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon, entering and remaining in a restricted building, and engaging in physical violence at the Capitol.

The affidavit states that "multiple" people are aware of Proud Boys working as government informants.


Broward Proud Boy Barry Ramey's Jan. 6 Arrest Reveals "Multiple Confidential Human Sources"



Proud Boy Barry Bennet Ramey, 38, was arrested Thursday in Plantation for his involvement in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Though a handful of local Proud Boys have been arrested for their roles in the deadly attack — most recently, Enrique Tarrio, the group's former chairman — documents filed in connection with Ramey's arrest reveal that "multiple confidential human sources" have provided information, including a "master list" of Proud Boys operating locally, to the Miami office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to an affidavit an FBI special agent submitted last Wednesday. (A copy of the affidavit is embedded at the bottom of this story.)

A Miami Proud Boy who spoke to New Times on the condition of anonymity says the organization immediately scrubbed Ramey from all Proud Boys communication channels and is now clearing out its online chat rooms, wiping its digital footprint, and removing a number of members from its ranks.

"We took [Ramey] out of every chat as of yesterday," the Miami Proud Boy said late last week. "We're cleaning house. We have a list of disavowed members who some chapters are keeping around, and we're getting rid of everybody."

After a January 2021 Reuters story revealed that Tarrio had worked as an informant following his 2012 arrest for relabeling stolen diabetes test kits, some Proud Boys suspected their former leader was still working as a federal informant. They went so far as to call Tarrio a "rat" even though there was no concrete evidence to suggest he was still cooperating with law enforcement.

Allegations regarding Tarrio aside, the FBI affidavit submitted last week states that "multiple" people know of Proud Boys working with law enforcement. The special agent who submitted the affidavit did not reveal identities or state whether the informants are current or former members of the organization.

"If Enrique was a fed, he wouldn't have been picked up and put in jail. He wouldn't have been denied bail. He would be home with an ankle bracelet," says the Miami Proud Boy who spoke with New Times.

More people have been arrested for their involvement in the insurrection in Florida than in any other state. Though not every person arrested in Florida was a member of the Proud Boys (e.g., Mason "#Tweedledumb" Courson of Tamarac), the group, which describes itself as a "Western chauvinist" men's drinking club, has been heavily implicated in the planning of the Capitol riot. Proud Boys Gabriel Garcia and Gilbert Fonticoba had been arrested for their roles in January 6 attack, and Tarrio was arrested at his Miami home in March and charged with conspiracy for his alleged role in orchestrating the insurrection.

Ramey is the latest local Proud Boy to be taken into custody.

In the recent Statement of Facts affidavit, the Miami FBI special agent describes how images and photos posted on the social-networking platform Parler show a man identified as Ramey among the crowd at the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. Footage reviewed by the FBI shows Ramey spraying two U.S. Capitol Police officers in the eyes with an unidentified orange substance and forcing officers up a set of stairs along with a large crowd yelling "push."

Ramey has been charged with impeding and assaulting a federal law enforcement officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon, entering and remaining in a restricted building, and engaging in physical violence at the Capitol.

The affidavit mentions at least one instance where Ramey appears to attempt to intimidate the FBI special agent investigating him. On April 8, two months after leaving a business card with one of Ramey's associates, the agent received a phone call from an unknown number. The agent recognized Ramey's voice, and the caller stated the agent's home address. The agent then received a text from that same number with the vehicle identification number (VIN) of a car the agent previously owned.

Less than two weeks after the phone exchange, Ramey was arrested in Plantation.

According to the Miami Proud Boy who spoke with New Times, Ramey was not a member of the Proud Boys at the time of the insurrection but joined the Broward chapter sometime later.

Ramey is being prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. At the time of this writing, he had not been assigned an attorney, and New Times was unable to reach him for comment.

https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/florida-proud-boy-barry-rameys-arrest-indicates-multiple-confidential-human-sources-14347242

[Rick Plant]

How Marjorie Taylor Greene’s testimony and texts could be used by the Jan. 6 committee: Ex-federal prosecutor



Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) on Friday told a court that she couldn't recall whether she'd discussed having former President Donald Trump declare martial law -- and on Monday, leaked text messages showed she asked former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows about that exact possibility.

Appearing on MSNBC Monday, former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance said Greene appeared "too cute by half," in her court appearance, and it could get her into some hot water.

According to Vance, the claims that Greene made under oath are "an important piece of testimony because it exposed the fact that... it's very clear when you watch that testimony with there's a lot of effort to be too cute by half to outsmart the questioner."

Vance went on to explain how this new information could be used by the House Select Committee investigating Jan. 6.

"So, this repeated invocation of a bad memory when they're relatively recent text messages provides some very interesting context for the committee to use, as it tells this story to the American people," she said. "There's very little doubt that she had set herself up as an arbiter of information between what was going on in the caucus that she was newly a part of and the White House. There's a lot of interesting information yet to come to light there."

See the full discussion below:

[Rick Plant]

Via text messages... Republican members of Congress were specifically trying to guide Mark Meadows on how to execute a plan to stop the certification of Biden's victory on Jan 6.

This text is from Jim Jordan ...per House Jan 6 committee.




And ... per Jan 6 committee court filing ... this text is from Rep Scott Perry (R-PA) ....about movement in Justice Dept.

[Rick Plant]

'Sovereign citizen' rioter shouldn't be allowed to present an alibi when video shows her storming the Capitol: prosecutors



Federal prosecutors are demanding that an accused Capitol rioter be forbidden from presenting an alibi in her trial because video shows her walking inside the building.

Pauline Bauer, a pizza shop owner from western Pennsylvania, was captured on surveillance video shoving police officers and calling for the hanging of House speaker Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress during the Jan. 6 insurrection, and prosecutors want to limit the arguments she may present in court, reported the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The 54-year-old Bauer has repeatedly made specious claims in court that she is a "sovereign citizen" who is not subject to U.S. law, and prosecutors clearly expect that she will introduce evidence outside the scope of facts in her case.

They have also asked District Court Judge Trevor McFadden to prohibit her from presenting arguments that encourage jury nullification, which occurs when jurors acquit a defendant who they believe is guilty on the belief the law they're charged with breaking is not valid.

Prosecutors also want the judge to set deadlines for Bauer's attorneys to say whether she will present an alibi or an insanity defense, and then prohibit her from making those claims if the deadlines are not met.

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2022/04/24/capitol-rioter-trial-pauline-bauer-pennsylvania-mckean-county-nancy-pelosi-william-blauser-january-6-insurrection/stories/202204240149

[Rick Plant]

ARRAIGNMENT today in recently filed Capitol riot case of Matthew Krol, who is accused of wresting baton from officer. Feds allege "Krol then turns to the crowd, holding up the baton as if in celebration".

[Rick Plant]

Feds have also included transcripts of alleged text messages sent to and from OathKeepers Founder Stewart Rhodes. Including from an Arizona figure named Todd Kandaris discussing movement of group from Arizona before Jan 6.