Woman accused in Capitol riot said she was recruited by Proud Boys: feds

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An alleged Capitol rioter accused of bragging about her involvement in last month’s insurrection is believed to have shared on social media that she was recruited to a Kansas City chapter of the Proud Boys, court papers show.

Felicia Konold, a 26-year-old from Tucson, Ariz., was arrested on Feb. 11 on a slew of charges, including conspiracy, civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, U.S. Department of Justice records show.

Court papers further indicate she not only bragged about her involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol siege – she is also believed to have boasted in a Snapchat video that she was recently recruited by the Kansas City Proud Boys.

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In a video from her Snapchat account, a female voice said she had just been "recruited into a f------ chapter from Kansas City," court papers state.

Felicia Konold on Jan. 6, 2020 ((FBI))

"In the post, the woman claimed she had been told that even though she was not from Kansas City, she was ‘with them now,’" the affidavit describes.

In the Snapchat video, the women then showed a "challenge coin" "that appears to have markings that designate it as belonging to the Kansas City Proud Boys," the document further alleges.

Prosecutors allege in a court filing that William Chrestman, who they described as the leader of Kansas City Proud Boys cell, "readily recruited" Felicia Konold and her brother from Arizona to join the group of Kansas City Proud Boys.

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Konold was seen in images from the Capitol insurrection wearing a tan cap with bright orange tape on the top, tan pants and a large green scarf, investigators said. Court papers describe how she was among a group of people, including her brother, Cory Konold, during the "initial confrontation with law enforcement" on Jan. 6.

Just minutes later, after the crowd overcame the U.S. Capitol Police presence, Felicia Konold and the group she was with repeatedly moved to the front of the crowd and, upon entering the building, dismantled or manipulated metal barriers, court papers state.

Screengrab of Snapchat suspected of belonging to Felicia Konold  ((FBI))

Konold and the others "were intended to and did serve to prevent law enforcement from securing areas of the Capitol against unlawful entrants," the document further charges.

After the siege, a woman who matches Konold’s description posted a video on Snapchat in which she sounded almost euphoric, saying she never could have imagined having such an influence on the events that unfolded that day. She laughingly references "all my boys, behind me, holding me up in the air, pushing back."

According to court papers, she can be heard laughing again and adding: "We f------ did it."

The Proud Boys is a neofascist organization that describes itself as "Western chauvinists" and has, in the past, typically forbidden female members.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) describes how their "actions belie their disavowals of bigotry: Rank-and-file Proud Boys and leaders regularly spout white nationalist memes and maintain affiliations with known extremists," and they "are known for anti-Muslim and misogynistic rhetoric."

"It is ironic that such a deeply misogynistic organization has attracted someone who is a woman to join their organization," Eric Ward, a senior fellow with the SPLC, told The Associated Press. "It tells us there is dissention in the ranks of Proud Boys right now."

Ward added: "The fact she has that coin, the challenge coin, tells me there is something happening around gender in the Proud Boys — and it is something worth paying attention to."

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Cassie Miller, a senior research analyst for the law center, said that for a period of time there were auxiliary groups of Proud Boys' Girls made up of the wives and girlfriends of members, but they were not allowed full membership within the group. She said as far as she knows, none of those auxiliary groups are active right now.

"The group has been very clear from the beginning it is an organization for men only," Miller said, according to The AP, "and they hold misogynistic believes [sic] and believe that women are best suited for domestic labor and should act as mothers and homemakers."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.