The United States authorities successfully prevented an attack targeting the UFC cage fighting event held at the White House. Court documents revealed this information on Tuesday. The conspirators, dissatisfied with the direction of the country, planned to use drones loaded with explosives and shoot at fleeing crowd members.
The FBI intercepted encrypted text messages among about 20 participants who shared detailed maps of the area. They also discussed the need for a “safe house” and escape routes after the attack. The court records did not specify how close the attackers were to executing their plan before it was thwarted last week.
On June 10, the FBI learned of the potential threat, just four days before the mixed martial arts event at the South Lawn of the White House. “Thanks to the FBI’s swift action, our partners, and the Justice Department in a multi-state operation, several individuals are now in custody, and the planned attacks have been halted,” stated agency director Kash Patel in a post. Five individuals were arrested in Ohio, Missouri, and California, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss non-public information.
“Members of the group claimed they wanted to protect the United States, which they believed was headed in the wrong direction,” the affidavit noted. “They felt America needed to be taken down to be rebuilt. Some expressed that individuals associated with Jeffrey Epstein should not govern the country.”
Among those arrested was Tycen Proper, a 19-year-old Ohio resident. His mother contacted local law enforcement last week, expressing concerns about his firearm purchases and online communications, according to an FBI affidavit. A federal public defender appointed for Proper, facing charges related to firearms offenses and attempted assassination of a U.S. official, has not responded to requests for comment. Proper appeared in court in Columbus, with a detention hearing scheduled for Wednesday. He admitted involvement in the attack planning during an interview with law enforcement, as stated in the affidavit.
The group began communicating via a TikTok group named “Vanguard of the Old” since March. Logistical details of the attack were discussed using Signal, an app with end-to-end encryption for messaging and calls. Authorities reported the main chat included “approximately 19 individuals” with smaller secondary chats. Messages retrieved from Proper’s phone indicated he discussed the plot and identified several lawmakers he believed should be targeted due to their support for Israel.
Proper informed law enforcement that he planned to drive with firearms and body armor to a meeting point in Fredericksburg, Virginia, where the group intended to assemble. While he expressed no intention of shooting individuals at the White House, others in the group were, according to the affidavit. The plan involved detonating drones over the north side of the White House, triggering a swift evacuation into a sniper’s firing line. Authorities said Proper described the attack as a means to “initiate” a revolution in the United States.
President Donald Trump, who was celebrating his 80th birthday at the UFC event on Sunday, was a former acquaintance of Epstein but claimed to have severed ties before Epstein’s crimes became known. Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking charges.
In response to reporters’ questions, President Trump indicated he was not informed of the thwarted plot. He made these remarks at the Group of Seven summit in Évian-les-Bains, France.