Federal agents disrupted what officials describe as a coordinated attack plan targeting a White House UFC event, resulting in five arrests across four states, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.
The alleged scheme involved members of a group planning to use explosive-laden drones to create chaos at the sporting event, according to a criminal complaint filed in Ohio federal court. The attack was intended to force crowds toward waiting snipers stationed outside the venue, investigators say.
A 19-year-old suspect named Tycen Proper admitted in interviews with FBI agents that the group had planned to travel from their homes to Fredericksburg, Virginia, roughly 50 miles outside Washington, D.C., to execute the attack. Proper told authorities the operation was designed to "jumpstart" a revolution, the complaint states.
According to federal allegations, encrypted communications among the suspects included references to potential targets using coded language. Names that emerged in the investigation include President Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Elon Musk and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The complaint also identifies specific members of Congress as possible targets, including Senators Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Jim Justice of West Virginia and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, as well as Representatives Riley Moore and Carol Miller, both from West Virginia.
Court filings indicate that one suspect obtained and circulated photos of the congressional targets from a website tracking pro-Israel political funding, suggesting the plotters may have selected their intended victims based on foreign policy positions.
Arrested alongside Proper were Bryan Roa, Michael Thomas, Daniel Eskridge and Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez. The FBI made arrests in Ohio, Missouri, Nebraska and California following a multi-state investigation launched after federal officials received a tip on June 10 about potential threats originating outside the Washington area.
The disrupted plot comes amid a spike in political violence directed at top officials. Earlier this year, a shooting occurred at a major Washington social event, and law enforcement has documented multiple attempts on the president's life in recent months. Federal agencies have heightened security protocols around major gatherings as a result.
The White House hosted a UFC event on its grounds Sunday to celebrate the president's 80th birthday, drawing administration officials and family members. Secret Service Director Sean Curran said his agency coordinated closely with the FBI throughout the investigation.
Security preparations are intensifying around additional mass-gathering events planned during the nation's 250th anniversary celebrations, including an Independence Day event at the White House that administration officials have promoted as a major spectacle. The Secret Service has designated the July 4th gathering a National Special Security Event, a designation typically reserved for ceremonial occasions like presidential inaugurations.
Author James Rodriguez: "This case reveals how active federal intelligence and joint task force operations have become in identifying plots before they materialize, but it also signals that the threat landscape has fundamentally shifted."
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