(AFP) – US law enforcement on Tuesday said it had foiled an alleged plot to attack the White House during a crowded mixed martial arts event attended by President Donald Trump and other top officials. “Multiple individuals are now in custody and allegedly planned attacks were stopped cold,” FBI Director Kash Patel announced on X.
According to Fox News and other US media, five people have been arrested and investigators have identified 23 people in a “potential network of plotters” who communicated in a Signal group chat. The group allegedly planned to detonate explosive-laden drones over the UFC arena on the White House lawn where the fights were held on Sunday and then have snipers open fire on “high value targets” in the crowd.
One of those arrested, according to a criminal complaint, was Tycen Proper, 19, who was taken into custody on June 10 in Ohio after his mother informed police he had been communicating online with a group that “expressed ultra-religious and anti-government sentiments.” According to Proper, who was found to be in possession of an AR-style rifle and thousands of rounds of ammunition, the attack was designed to “‘jumpstart’ a revolution in the United States,” the complaint said.
Trump on Sunday joined thousands of fans at the White House fights, where a temporary arena dubbed “The Claw” was erected on the South Lawn. The White House is protected by intense surveillance, fencing, checkpoints, anti-air-attack capabilities, snipers, and a permanent group of quick-reaction forces. “In the days leading up to this weekend, our special agents, mission support personnel, and technical security teams worked around the clock to identify those responsible and hold them accountable,” Secret Service Director Sean Curran said on X.
The “UFC Freedom 250” event — which coincided with Trump’s 80th birthday — was meant to kick off this year’s festivities for the 250th anniversary of the declaration of US independence. Trump has faced several assassination attempts in recent years, most recently when a gunman attempted to storm a White House press gala he was attending in April.
US Vice President JD Vance, who also attended the UFC event, said Tuesday morning in an appearance on Fox News that he had just learned about the alleged plot. Asked why the FBI revealed the foiled plot — a step it does not always take for various security reasons — Vance pointed to the potential “scale of the planned attack.” He described it as a “coordinated planned terrorist plot” and cited the Trump administration’s work to investigate funding and coordination networks of radical left-wing groups.
Vance did not provide further details on who the alleged suspects were or their motivations, but nonetheless accused Democrats of fomenting violence with anti-Trump rhetoric. “Everybody has a role to cut this stuff out, but I think a lot of my Democratic colleagues in Washington have got to look themselves in the mirror and say, ‘why is so much of this political violence coming from our side of the spectrum?'” he said.
The White House has repeatedly claimed that Trump critics and the media are responsible for rising political tension in the country. Opponents of Trump say the Republican president’s often inflammatory rhetoric against opponents, immigrants, and the election system are to blame.
– Daniel STUBLEN
© 2024 AFP
