AP
—
A former police officer in the nation’s capital was found guilty Monday of lying to authorities for leaking classified information to the leader of the Proud Boys extremist group.
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson convicted former Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Shane Lamond of obstruction of justice and making false statements after a nonjury trial.
Sentencing was scheduled for April 3 after Lamond was found guilty on all four charges.
Ramond was charged with leaking information to then-Proud Boys national president Enrique Tarrio, who was under investigation for burning a Black Lives Matter banner.
Ramond testified in a jury trial that he never provided Tarrio with confidential police information. Tarrio, who testified in Ramond’s defense, said he did not confess to Ramond that he burned the banner and did not receive any confidential information from Ramond.
However, the judge did not find either testimony reliable. Mr. Jackson said evidence showed Mr. Ramond did not use Mr. Tarrio as a source of information after the banner was burned.
“It was the other way around,” she said.
The judge said there was a pattern to the messages Ramond and Tarrio exchanged over several months, adding, “Ramond and Tarrio conversed, and Tarrio quickly disseminated what he learned.”
The judge described Tarrio on the stand as a “terrible witness” who was “flirty, bossy, and obnoxious.”
“He was one of the worst players I had a chance to sit next to while I was on the bench,” Jackson said.
After the verdict, defense attorney Mark Schamel said it was too early to say whether he would appeal.
“It’s incredibly unfortunate that everything Lt. Ramond saw through his lens appears to be something other than what it actually is,” Shamel said outside court. “There’s nothing dishonest about him at all. This is a sad day for him.”
Tarrio ultimately pleaded guilty to burning a banner stolen from a historic Black church in downtown Washington in December 2020.
He was later sentenced to 22 years in prison for his role in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. Prosecutors called it part of a plan to use force to keep Donald Trump in the White House after the 2020 election.
Mr. Ramond, who met Mr. Tarrio in 2019, oversaw the intelligence division of the Department of Police’s Homeland Security Agency. He was in charge of monitoring when groups like the Proud Boys came to Washington.
Tarrio was arrested in Washington two days before the January 6 siege. The Miami resident was not at the Capitol when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the building and blocked Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.
Prosecutors said trial evidence showed Mr. Ramond tipped off Mr. Tarrio that an arrest warrant had been signed.
“Similarly, Defendant proactively advised Mr. Tarrio in writing that he was required to identify himself in order to obtain a warrant, clearly in consideration of subsequent prosecution; It was a warning with clear consequences,” prosecutors wrote.
According to Ramond’s indictment, Ramond and Tarrio exchanged messages about the Jan. 6 riot and discussed whether members of the Proud Boys were at risk of being prosecuted for the attack.
“Of course I can’t say it publicly, but I personally support you and don’t want to see your group’s name or reputation dragged into the mud,” Ramond wrote.
Lamond was accused by prosecutors of being a Proud Boys “sympathizer” and acting as a “double agent” for the group after burning a Black Lives Matter banner stolen by Tarrio in December 2020. He said he was angry about the label.
“I don’t support the Proud Boys and I’m not a supporter of the Proud Boys,” Lamond testified.
Ms. Ramond said she considers Ms. Tarrio a source of information, not a friend. However, he said he tried to build a friendly relationship with the group leader in order to gain his trust.
Justice Department prosecutor Joshua Rothstein pointed to messages suggesting Mr. Ramond had provided Mr. Tarrio with “real-time updates” on the police investigation into the Dec. 12, 2020, banner-burning incident.
Lamond, 48, of Colonial Beach, Virginia, was charged with one count of obstruction of official business and three counts of making false statements. He retired in May 2023 after 23 years with the police force.
