Ex-member: Proud Boys were ‘tip of the spear’ after election

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — A jury is hearing testimony from a former high-ranking Proud Boys member who pleaded guilty to plotting with group leaders to violently stop the transfer of presidential power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Jeremy Bertino told jurors on Tuesday that he viewed their far-right extremist organization as “the tip of the spear” after the 2020 election. Bertino is testifying against former Proud Boys national leader Enrique Tarrio and four lieutenants as part of a cooperation deal with federal prosecutors. Bertino is the only group member who has pleaded guilty to a seditious conspiracy charge stemming from a mob’s attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The five defendants on trial are charged with the same offense.