DC Police Lieutenant On Leave For Alleged Ties With Extremist Group: Report

WASHINGTON, DC — A Metropolitan Police Department police lieutenant is under investigation for alleged ties to the Proud Boys, a right-wing extremist group known for violence and its participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to reports.

The officer was placed on leave pending an investigation into his possible affiliation with the group.

The Washington Post reported Wednesday that the investigation was focused on communications between Lt. Shane Lamond, a 22-year veteran of the MPD, and Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, a leader of the Proud Boys. Lamond is an officer in the MPD’s Intelligence Unit.

The Proud Boys were involved in numerous protests and attacks on D.C. residents in 2020. Its members also took part in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Tarrio did not participate in the Jan. 6 attack because he was arrested two days earlier by D.C. police in connection with the burning of a Black Lives Matter flag that belonged to a D.C. church and possessing high-capacity firearm magazines.

D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee addressed the investigation at a news conference Wednesday evening, DCist reported. But he said he was unable to share many details because of an ongoing investigation being conducted with the U.S. Department of Justice and FBI into the police lieutenant.

Tarrio told The Washington Post in a phone interview that he provided Lamond and other police officials advance notice when the Proud Boys planned to rally or march in the District. During Proud Boy marches in D.C., Lamond also would tell Tarrio the location of counterdemonstrators, according to the report.

Tarrio explained to The Post that Lamond's intelligence helped his group avoid conflict. But police also have accused the Proud Boys of instigating fights, targeting people in D.C. they believed identified as antifascists.

Activists have accused D.C. police of standing by when they have been attacked by Proud Boys. Officers also have posed for photos with Proud Boys and allowed the group to destroy Black Lives Matters signs, The Post reported.

Police have denied those accusations, the newspaper said.