Federal documents unsealed Friday allege an Auburn man was in charge of Proud Boys who stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Ethan Nordean, along with three other alleged leaders, were charged for their roles in the Jan. 6 riot. During the riot, dozens of police officers were assaulted, and the capitol suffered millions of dollars in damage, according to federal documents.
Nordean, also known as Rufio Panman, is the so-called Sergeant of Arms of the Seattle Chapter of the Proud Boys – which the FBI has designated as an extremist group with ties to White Nationalism.
Federal investigators say the group encouraged other Proud Boys to travel to Washington D.C. and tried to destroy evidence of their conversations on message boards days before the riot. Charles Donohue, who was also indicted, created a new communication channel on Jan. 4 and took steps to "nuke" the old one after the Proud Boys' chairman was arrested, according to court documents.
At one point the Proud Boys were told to follow the command of Nordean.
One online message from an unindicted co-conspirator on Jan. 5 read, “Rufio is in charge, cops are the primary threat, don't get caught by them or BLM, don't get drunk until off the street."
Nordean was arrested in February and was indicted on six counts, including conspiracy, obstruction of an official proceeding, obstruction of law enforcement, destruction of government property and entering and remaining in a restricted building.
Earlier this month, a judge ordered Nordean released pending trial. He's under house arrest and is not allowed to have access to firearms.