[7] According to Dave Neiwert, a journalist and author who covers far right political groups, "He's particularly noteworthy for the extraordinary levels of thuggish violence he brings to these events".

Police declared the event a riot after violent street fighting broke out amid tensions between anti-fascist activists and Patriot Prayer supporters.

[9][8] Following that incident, a meme featuring video of that punch went viral, and Gavin McInnes, founder of the Proud Boys, praised Nordean's role in the violent episode, calling it "the turning point in our war against antifa".

"[14] Describing left-wing counter-protesters, Nordean told Jones and his audience that "these are no longer people who are necessarily Americans, per se, but they're kind of anti-American" and "you just have to eliminate them as a threat".

Due to a technical error, the names could be recovered, and Nordean was listed as a member of the eight man "Elder Chapter", the top level leadership group, under his alias, Rufio Panman.

Devin Burghart, president of the Institute for Research & Education on Human Rights, said, "He's been helping map the direction of the organization and recruiting members ...

[10] On January 4, 2021, Nordean posted a video on his Rebel Talk with Rufio podcast that was captioned, "Let them remember the day they decided to make war with us".

A video livestreamer who is a member of the Proud Boys described Biggs and Nordean as "Two men on a mission, with about 500 behind them ready to kick some butt for the benefit of this country".

The caption read, "If you feel bad for the police, you are part of the problem..."[23] On February 3, Nordean was arrested and charged with four federal crimes, including obstructing an official proceeding, aiding and abetting injury to government property, disorderly conduct and knowingly and violently entering a restricted building.

[10] On February 7, federal judge Beryl Howell denied Nordean's bail request, and ordered him to be returned to Washington, DC pending trial.

"[24] On March 3, 2021, Howell ordered Nordean released to home detention with GPS monitoring pending trial, finding that though he "indisputably participated" in the Capitol assault, the government's evidence of specific acts of violence and property damage was "weak.

[27] Prosecutors included in a May 2021 court filing a Telegram message Nordean had sent expressing a sense of betrayal, lamenting that Trump had pardoned "a bunch of degenerates as his last move and shit on us on the way out" and "now I've got some of my good friends and myself facing jail time cuz we followed this guys lead and never questioned it.

[2] The prosecution asked U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly to enhance the sentence of Nordean to 27 years on Friday by ruling that their acts to disrupt the electoral vote certification qualified as terrorism.

[10] His father, Michael Nordean, owns and operates Wally's Chowder House restaurants in Des Moines and Buckley in Washington state, and Ethan formerly worked in the family business.