Ex-Rubio Intern Charged in Connection with Jan. 6 Incident

A 23-year-old Miami Lakes woman, who previously interned for Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. was recently indicted for her role in the Jan. 6, 2021, unrest at the Capitol.

Barbara Balmaseda was charged with storming and entering the Capitol on Jan. 6 along with a Proud Boys member, according to court filings. She was arrested in December.

Balmaseda interned for Rubio from 2018 to 2019, according to the Miami New Times. Her attorney, Nayib Hassan told the New Times they plan to launch a vigorous defense.

“It is our position that the Government is overzealously presenting charges against individuals that have very little to no connections to what occurred on January 6, 2021, in Washington D.C.,” Hassan told The Hill.

Hassan said they are awaiting the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on a challenge to an obstruction law used against several charged in the Jan. 6 unrest, the Hill reported.

Online detectives first spotted Balmaseda in photographs of her wearing a black-and-pink gaiter, earning her the name #PinkGaiterPBG and #PinkPBGirl on social media, the New Times reported. She was seen with Gabriel Garcia and Ethan Nordean, two Proud Boys who were also indicted for their role at the Capitol.

She was photographed with Garcia on the Black Lives Matter Plaza wearing a Trump 2020 hat and climbed onto equipment staged near the Capitol before entering the building, the Hill reported.

From Nov. 2020 to Jan. 2021, Balmadeda sent 900 messages to a Telegram group chat that featured Miami-area Proud Boys, dubbed “Barby’s Security 😊 “ and “Barby’s Security Detail” according to the New Times.

Balmaseda also was an organizer for Ron DeSantis’ 2018 campaign for governor and was a campaign manager for Ileana Garcia’s 2020 campaign for Florida Senate. She also worked for the Miami Young Republicans, the New Times reported.