Federal prosecutors allege the suspects planned drone strikes and sniper attacks during the UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House lawn.
Five Men, Five States, One Alleged Target
Federal authorities announced charges Tuesday against five men accused of orchestrating a plot to mass-murder government officials during a mixed martial arts event held on the White House’s South Lawn. The Justice Department identified the suspects as Tycen C. Proper, 19, of Danville, Ohio; Bryan Omar Roa, 24, of Calimesa, Calif.; Michael Alan Thomas, 32, of Pinon Hills, Calif.; Daniel K. Eskridge, 32, of Kidder, Mo.; and Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, 31, of Omaha, Neb.
The alleged scheme, prosecutors say, targeted Sunday’s Freedom 250 event — a UFC fight night hosted by President Donald Trump on the South Lawn to mark both his 80th birthday and the approaching 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
An Elaborate Plot Involving Drones and Snipers
According to the Justice Department’s complaint, the men allegedly planned to deploy explosive-laden drones over the crowded outdoor arena, causing mass panic and triggering an emergency evacuation. Pre-positioned snipers would then move in, targeting what the complaint describes as high-value individuals fleeing the scene.
Investigators recovered encrypted communications that laid out the alleged operation in detail, along with firearms and ammunition believed to have been procured for its execution. Court documents allege authorities discovered, on Proper’s phone, a Signal group chat of approximately 19 individuals actively coordinating the attack.
The scope of the alleged conspiracy — spanning multiple states and relying on encrypted platforms — pointed to a level of planning that federal officials said required swift intervention.
What the Suspects Allegedly Said
Court documents reveal that members of the group articulated political grievances as motivation for the alleged plot. According to the complaint against Proper, participants stated a belief that the United States was headed in the wrong direction and needed to be dismantled before it could be rebuilt. Some members of the group also reportedly expressed concern about individuals connected to Jeffrey Epstein holding positions of power.
Proper himself faces the most extensive list of charges: conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, attempted murder of a federal officer or employee, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime, among others. The remaining four defendants — Alvarez, Eskridge, Roa, and Thomas — face conspiracy to commit murder charges, with Alvarez carrying an additional conspiracy count.
Federal Officials Respond
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche credited the FBI and its law enforcement partners with disrupting the alleged attack before it could be carried out. FBI Director Kash Patel described a multi-state operation that led to all five arrests, adding that the investigation remains ongoing.
If convicted on conspiracy to commit murder, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. A conspiracy charge tied specifically to violence on White House grounds carries a maximum of five years.
The UFC Event Itself Drew Controversy
The Freedom 250 fights drew scrutiny well before the charges were announced. The event was staged in a large temporary arena constructed on the South Lawn — a site with historical precedent, including Woodrow Wilson’s wartime sheep-grazing initiative in 1918 and Gerald Ford’s bicentennial celebration with Queen Elizabeth II in 1976.
The night took a sharp turn when heavyweight winner Josh Hokit used his post-fight microphone time to make an unsubstantiated and offensive remark about Michelle Obama. UFC president and CEO Dana White publicly condemned the statement, calling it wrong to say harmful and untrue things about people’s families. The White House has not issued a public comment on the remarks.
Source: Entertainment Weekly