The United States Department of Justice has announced the arrest of five men accused of plotting a deadly attack on the Ultimate Fighting Championship event held at the White House on Sunday.
According to prosecutors, the suspects allegedly planned to use explosive-laden drones to strike nearby buildings before opening fire on designated “high value targets” during the event.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed the operation on Tuesday, writing on social media that the “multi-state operation” ensured the “Allegedly planned attacks were stopped cold.”
The suspects were identified as Tycen C Proper, 19, of Ohio; Bryan Omar Roa, 24, and Michael Alan Thomas, 32, both from California; Daniel K Eskridge, 32, of Missouri; and Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, 31, of Nebraska. Authorities arrested them across four states and charged each with conspiracy to commit murder.
Investigators said the attackers allegedly intended to create chaos by deploying drones loaded with explosives, forcing crowds to flee toward sniper positions. Court documents further claim a “second wave” of attackers was expected to advance toward the White House gates.
The UFC event, hosted on the South Lawn as part of celebrations marking America’s 250th anniversary, attracted approximately 4,300 invited guests, while another 85,000 spectators watched from nearby locations.
Court filings linked to Alvarez indicate that the group discussed targeting several prominent figures, including US President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and other elected officials. Prosecutors noted that not all of those named were present at the event.
Authorities uncovered the alleged plot after Proper’s mother contacted local law enforcement on 10 June.
She reportedly became alarmed by her son’s recent firearms purchases and online communications with a group claiming ties to former military personnel and Christian-based beliefs.
Prosecutors said the group aimed to “jumpstart” a revolution by attacking “high-value targets” attending the UFC event. Members allegedly voiced frustrations over issues including government corruption, the handling of the Epstein files, water consumption by data centres and other government policies.
Investigators said participants believed they were acting to “protect the United States, which they believed was headed in the wrong direction”.
An FBI document added: “Members of the group believed that the United States needed to be torn down so that it could be rebuilt.”
During an FBI interview conducted on 11 June, Proper reportedly admitted involvement in planning discussions.
He told investigators that communication among members began around March through a TikTok group called “Vanguard of the Old”, also referred to in court records as “Vanguard of the Old Republic”.
Authorities have not established whether the group was connected to any larger extremist organisation.
However, Proper allegedly told investigators that most members were recruited through TikTok before being moved to the encrypted messaging platform Signal after being vetted.
According to prosecutors, the primary Signal chat contained about 19 members, while smaller groups of four or five individuals were created based on specific duties and geographic locations.
Court documents claim Thomas developed a four-level organisational structure. Prosecutors said the top tier consisted of members who would “be sacrificing for your country, and carrying a brunt of the weight” by potentially breaking laws and going underground. Lower tiers allegedly included supporters, financiers and influencers.
Investigators also uncovered conversations in which members allegedly discussed assassinating lawmakers and prominent business leaders.
Some politicians were reportedly selected because of the group’s belief that they had accepted money from pro-Israel lobbying organisations.
Court records state that Eskridge described one proposed target as “big and someone a majority of the country knows”.
The DOJ alleged that Alvarez played a leading role in organising the planned UFC attack and was responsible for drone-related operations.
Authorities further claimed the suspects circulated maps of Washington identifying sniper positions, drone launch sites and power infrastructure that could potentially be targeted. Images included in court filings reportedly show tactical equipment, weapons and detailed maps.
According to the complaint, “Proper said that although he was not going to the protest in order to shoot people, several other members of the group were intent on violence.”
Speaking at an unrelated briefing on Tuesday, Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn described the case as a “serious threat” but declined to discuss details because the investigation remains active.
Quinn also criticised the public disclosure of the case, stating: “I’ll tell you a phrase I learned early in my career in the New York field office and that’s ‘Don’t choke on your own smoke.'”
“In order to maintain the integrity of the investigation and the security plan, we chose not to leak it,” he added.
Asked about the alleged plot during the G7 summit in France, President Trump responded: “I haven’t heard about it.”
If convicted, all five defendants could face life imprisonment and fines of up to $250,000. Proper is also facing three additional charges, including conspiracy to commit violence on White House grounds, which carries a maximum sentence of five years.
A preliminary court hearing has been scheduled for 29 June.
The White House UFC event took place inside a temporary outdoor arena known as The Claw and coincided with Trump’s 80th birthday celebrations.
The gathering came amid heightened security concerns following a shooting at the White House Correspondents Dinner two months earlier and a separate incident last month in which Secret Service agents fatally shot a man who opened fire at a White House checkpoint.
Political scientist Erica Frantz of Michigan State University told the BBC that political violence in the United States appears to be increasing. She said it tends “to be cyclical, where one act of violence often leads to another one”.
Research by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism found that targeted violence in the US increased by more than 30 per cent between 2024 and 2025.
“There will always be disgruntled members of society who advocate conspiracy theories and extremist views that together don’t make much sense,” Frantz said. “I am less concerned with the specific motivation, and more concerned with the societal forces pushing people to the fringe.”
