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A leader of the Proud Boys pleaded guilty on Friday to felony charges for his actions before and during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Charles Donohoe, 34, of North Carolina, pleaded guilty to two felony counts, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and assaulting, resisting or impeding officers. As part of the plea agreement, Donohoe has agreed to cooperate with the government’s ongoing investigation.
Donohoe was one of four Proud Boys leaders indicted in March 2021 on six counts alleging the group conspired to disrupt the joint session of Congress on Jan. 6
Donohoe joined the Proud Boys in 2018 and became the president of his local Proud Boys chapter in North Carolina. As of Jan. 6, 2021, he was a fourth-degree member of the Proud Boys, the highest rank within the organization.
Donohoe joined the leadership of a new Proud Boys chapter called the Ministry of Self Defense on Dec. 20, 2020, according to the statement of offense that accompanied his plea.
As early as Jan. 4, 2021, “Donohoe was aware that members of MOSD leadership were discussing the possibility of storming the Capitol,” according to the court papers.
“Donohoe believed that storming the Capitol would achieve the group’s goal of stopping the government from carrying out the transfer of presidential power,” the statement of offense reads, which Donohoe testified under oath in court was correct and accurate. “Donohoe understood that storming the Capitol would be illegal.”
The document contains information about the alleged steps Donohoe and the other defendants took leading up to Jan. 6, including exchanging text messages on the eve of the rally about their plans.
“Donohoe understood from discussions that the group would pursue this through the use of force and violence, in order to show Congress that ‘we the people’ were in charge,” it says.
While other Proud Boys have agreed to plead guilty, Donohoe marks the first leader of the group to agree to cooperate with the prosecution. His testimony could be key at trial to proving the group planned for violence on Jan. 6 with the intention of disrupting the certification of electoral college votes.
