Dispute Over Claim That Proud Boys Leader Urged Attack at Capitol

In the mosaic of moments that made up the onslaught connected the Capitol connected Jan. 6, it has agelong been 1 of the astir intriguing: As a pro-Trump mob grew successful size and anger, a antheral successful a MAGA chapeau concisely spoke extracurricular the gathering with the Proud Boys person Joseph Biggs.

Minutes later, the man, Ryan Samsel, walked to the beforehand of the crowd, turned his chapeau backward and started to shove aggressively astatine a barricade. As others joined him, the barricade fell, knocking down a constabulary serviceman and arguably mounting disconnected the ensuing riot.

While the brushwood betwixt Mr. Biggs and Mr. Samsel was caught connected video and is often thought of arsenic a tipping constituent successful the Capitol attack, small has been known astir what the 2 men said to each other.

For months, however, according to 3 radical acquainted with the matter, the authorities has known Mr. Samsel’s relationship of the exchange: He has told investigators that Mr. Biggs encouraged him to propulsion astatine the barricades and that erstwhile helium hesitated, the Proud Boys person flashed a gun, questioned his manhood and repeated his request to determination upfront and situation the police.

Mr. Samsel’s mentation of events was provided to the authorities successful precocious January, erstwhile helium was interviewed by the F.B.I., without a lawyer present, soon aft his apprehension successful Pennsylvania, according to the radical acquainted with the matter. He has since been charged with respective crimes, including assaulting an serviceman and obstructing Congress’ efforts to certify the predetermination results.

It is not wide whether the F.B.I. views Mr. Samsel arsenic credible astatine this constituent oregon whether the Justice Department intends to usage his accusation successful its lawsuit against Mr. Biggs.

A erstwhile airborne worker who has helped signifier respective Proud Boys rallies successful caller years, Mr. Biggs has been charged with conspiring with different leaders of the far-right group to march a mob of members toward — past into — the Capitol that day. He has not been charged with immoderate weapon crimes, and prosecutors ne'er mentioned the accusation that helium was carrying a limb during the extended arguments that preceded a justice denying him bail.

J. Daniel Hull, Mr. Biggs’s lawyer, denied that his lawsuit was equipped connected Jan. 6 oregon that helium sought to promote Mr. Samsel to face the police, calling it a “desperate, if wildly entertaining, mendacious history.”

“Not adjacent the likes of the Biden Justice Department would bargain into and rotation a gangly communicative similar that,” Mr. Hull said.

The New York Times reviewed 2 antithetic versions of the video of the meeting, but the footage is little and occasionally obscured by obstructions similar a passer-by and a flag, making it intolerable to conclusively corroborate oregon contradict Mr. Samsel’s account.

In its nationalist filings, the authorities has ne'er explicitly mentioned the video footage of the brushwood betwixt Mr. Biggs and Mr. Samsel, who appears to person nary ties to the Proud Boys. Prosecutors person successful information near lone meager hints astir imaginable connections betwixt the men, noting successful tribunal papers this outpouring that they were some successful the aforesaid portion of the assemblage extracurricular the Capitol.

But if Mr. Samsel’s relationship is true, it could service to bolster arguments that immoderate Proud Boys leaders intentionally incited mean radical successful the assemblage — oregon what they notation to arsenic “normies” — to perpetrate unit during the attack. The authorities has offered different evidence, drawn from the group’s interior messaging chats, that 2 Proud Boys leaders from Philadelphia were excited by the imaginable of “riling up the normies” connected Jan. 6.

The immense probe into the Capitol onslaught has truthful acold led to 630 national arrests and astir 100 blameworthy pleas. The conspiracy charges against Mr. Biggs and 16 different Proud Boys are immoderate of the astir salient allegations that the Justice Department has made.

Mr. Biggs, who lives successful Florida, was the archetypal of 4 Proud Boys leaders to beryllium arrested successful transportation with the Capitol attack. The interior chats suggest that helium was successful connection with the group’s chairman, Enrique Tarrio, connected the nighttime earlier the assault.

Mr. Tarrio himself was not successful Washington that day, having been ordered by a section justice to enactment distant from the metropolis aft his apprehension days earlier connected charges of illegally possessing ammunition magazines and burning a Black Lives Matter banner aft a pro-Trump rally successful December. He is presently serving a five-month condemnation connected the charges.

Before joining the Proud Boys, Mr. Biggs was, among different things, a analogous for Infowars, the conspiracy-minded media institution tally by Alex Jones. He has remained adjacent to Mr. Jones, who was besides astatine the Capitol connected Jan. 6 with his right-hand man, Owen Shroyer, who has been arrested connected charges of illegally entering a restricted country extracurricular the building. Mr. Jones has not been charged successful transportation with the riot adjacent though helium was lasting adjacent Mr. Shroyer.

The authorities has not yet secured Mr. Samsel’s practice successful its probe of Mr. Biggs, for reasons that stay unclear.

Mr. Samsel has been successful custody since his apprehension and has a past of convulsive behavior, prosecutors say, which could harm his credibility arsenic a imaginable authorities witness. He has been convicted, for example, of crimes specified arsenic beating up his large woman and moving a pistillate who owed him wealth disconnected the roadworthy successful his car.

Not agelong aft helium was jailed successful transportation with the Capitol riot, Mr. Samsel claimed a correctional serviceman assaulted him successful a Washington jail, leaving him with a breached nose, a dislocated jaw and the nonaccomplishment of show successful his close eye. The fallout from the battle could besides marque it hard for prosecutors to see utilizing his testimony.

His lawyer, Stanley Woodward, declined to remark connected the case.