Proud Boy confirms FBI search of Madera home. He made $150 off the YouTube live stream
Madera Proud Boy Eddie Block confirmed in a YouTube live video Friday night that the FBI served a search warrant at his home earlier that day and seized his electronic devices.
Block told his viewers 25 FBI agents searched his home and seized his electronics. He said they wanted video footage he shot Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol during the violent siege. Five people died as a result of injuries or medical conditions.
Block said the agents covered camera lenses at his home with tape and seized his cellphone, a backup cellphone, laptop, iPad, microphone, Xbox, an old computer, battery chargers, a cable box and some of his hats. The agents bought him a prepaid cellphone to use after seizing his iPhone 12, he said, but it didn’t work.
“They told me over and over again that I’m not under investigation,” Block said.
The FBI and U.S. Department of Justice continue to investigate criminal activity at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Block filmed himself on a balcony there that day. So far, a number of people, including members of the Proud Boys, have been arrested and taken into custody in connection to the insurrection.
A public affairs specialist with the FBI confirmed to The Bee on Saturday that FBI agents and local law enforcement partners were present at Block’s address on Friday, but could provide no further details.
While Block interacted with commenters during his YouTube live stream, many asked about Hunter Biden’s laptop and said the seizing of Block’s belongings was an example of communism. They wrote misogynistic comments about Vice President Kamala Harris and called Block a patriot, expressing support for him. Block also disagreed with those who labeled him as racist, saying he dated and married a Mexican woman and found a Black woman attractive.
By the end of the hour-long video stream, viewers had pledged over $150 to Block.
Agents showed up at Block’s home around noon and were seen going in and out of the home on East Cleveland Avenue for more than four hours, according to neighbors and other witnesses who stopped their cars to watch. FBI personnel were accompanied by Madera County Sheriff’s deputies and at least one Madera Police officer.
The investigators were present at the same address Block listed as his home address when he lost his race for county supervisor last year. While he was a candidate, he was arrested and booked into jail on suspicion of driving under the influence after crashing his vehicle into a house.
Block filmed himself at the rally for former President Donald Trump and the following storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. In the video, Block is seen wearing a Proud Boys patch and at one point he tells his audience, “We’re storming the Capitol, guys.” He stayed on a Capitol balcony long after most of the rioters dispersed. Capitol police offered to help him down the steps since he uses a scooter, but he declined.
The Proud Boys are a fascist, white supremacist group that often engages in violent clashes at political rallies.
This story was originally published January 23, 2021 at 12:45 PM.