Enrique Talio, former leader of the proud boys, said he personally thanked President Trump on Saturday night for issuing an amnesty on January 6, 2021, shortening the 22-year sentence he served in connection with the attack on the Capitol.
Talio's expression of gratitude came during a brief but extraordinary encounter with Trump at his presidential private club in Palm Beach, Florida and his residence, MarÃa Lago.
According to senior management who was not allowed to publicly discuss the episode, members of the club introduced Talio and his mother to Trump as the president walked through the main room of Mar Arago on his way to the patio table.
In an interview, Talio and Duarte said they spoke with Trump for about 10 minutes, recalling that they believed his supporters were abused in the face of the charges arising from the Capitol attack.
A White House spokesman did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Talio told Trump that the president saved his life by including him in Clementy's blanket grant, which has been extended to all of the nearly 1,600 people charged in connection with January 6.
“He knew the hardships that me and my family had been facing for three years,” Talio later wrote about his encounter on social media. “He knew how many times they moved me and he said he was working on getting things right and I was grateful to him for giving me life back.
Talio's 22-year term was the toughest penalty the defendant faced on January 6th. Since being released from custody, Talio has been involved in many ventures, including podcasts and crypto coins with other members of the proud boy, a far-right extremist group convicted of inflammatory conspiracy two years ago.
Hundreds of people descend at Mar Arago for dinner each night. All guests go through a screening process by the Secret Service.
Duarte said that a club member introduced him and said, “Oh, you're that guy,” and that Trump quickly recognized his son's name. Talio said the president knew the names of some of the co-defendants in the agitation case: Joseph Biggs, Ethan Nordan, Zachary Lehr and Dominique Pezzola.
Talio said he didn't know what he meant when Trump declared he was trying to make “things” “right” for the Jan. 6 mob that had received his toleration.
Over the past four years, Trump has been actively working to rewrite the history of January 6th, describing it as a “love” day, calling those convicted of assaulting leaders and attacking police officers “political hostages.”
His encounter with Talio comes a day after Justice Department lawyers told court that they had reached a preliminary agreement to settle a $30 million lawsuit filed against the government by the family of Ashli ​​Babbitt, a rioter who was shot dead on January 6 by a US Congressman police officer. Details of the settlement remain unknown.
The Babbitt family sued the government in January 2024 over what they described as an illegal death at the hands of officers' hands, Michael Byrd. After a three-month investigation, prosecutors decided not to pursue criminal charges against Officer Byrd.
