A former Proud Boys leader said he has received death threats after reports that he joined ICE, according to a Newsweek report Thursday.
Enrique Tarrio, who previously led the far-right, male-only militia group, told the outlet he was considering legal action after media outlets reported on an alleged database leak and published his name. He said he was not employed by ICE, although he said he would "love" to be a federal agent and could "do with the $50,000," referring to the bonus ICE agents are promised when they sign on.
"I've been getting a lot of f------ death threats because of this stupid troll, and it's not just a troll: The media—I'm using that term loosely—the media outlet NowThis actually went ahead and published like this, this campaign that says that I'm some sort of f------ ace agent without even asking me, without even contacting me for a comment," Tarrio said.
Tarrio alleged that Telemundo was also among the outlets that published the report about him joining the federal agency and did not contact him, saying, "and they have my number, they could have just called me."
"I'm going to take a look at my legal options," Tarrio said.
He told Newsweek that he was in civil court on Thursday and dealing with a civil lawsuit against the United States that he stated was moving "in a successful manner" and prompted him to consider further action against media groups that allegedly published the leaked information.
"If I'm suing the United States of America, it's very easy for me to sue media outlets that decided to publish this," Tarrio said.
The Proud Boys played a prominent role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, and Tarrio was convicted in May 2023 of seditious conspiracy for his role in organizing and coordinating the group's involvement in the attack. Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in prison, making him one of the most severely punished participants in the Capitol riot, as prosecutors demonstrated that he and other Proud Boys leadership planned and coordinated the violent breach of the Capitol building with the intent to oppose the authority of the federal government.
Tarrio's sentence was pardoned by President Donald Trump, after Trump issued a sweeping pardon on his first day in office of more than 1,500 people. Earlier this month, Tarrio confirmed that he was working as an FBI informant in 2013 and allegedly helped to bring down a sex trafficking ring in Mexico, Newsweek reported.
