A group of 11 anti-ICE activists are facing federal charges for an alleged July 4 plot to ambush and assassinate Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers working at the ICE-operated Prairieland Detention Center in Alverado, Texas.
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“Ten to 12 individuals dressed in black, military-style clothing, began shooting fireworks and engaging in acts of vandalism at the facility, and this was part of an organized attack. Today, my office has charged 10 individuals with three counts of attempted murder of a federal officer,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Nancy Larson.
“It was a planned ambush with an intent to kill ICE corrections officers. Make no mistake, this was not a so-called peaceful protest. It was, indeed, an ambush,” she added.
According to the criminal complaint, the alleged attack began at 10:37 p.m. when a group of individuals began shooting fireworks at the detention facility in an apparent attempt to sew discord and distract officers.
Two members of the group allegedly broke off from the larger group and began to graffiti and vandalize vehicles with phrases such as “ICE Pig.”
Officers at the facility called 911, informing the local Alvaredo Police Department of the situation. Before police backup arrived, two unarmed ICE corrections officers tried to approach and speak to the vandals.
As a local police officer arrived, one man standing off in the woods and apparently signaling to the other assailants, allegedly opened fire along with another defendant hiding in the woods.
These two allegedly shot the local police officer in the neck, and fired on, but did not hit, the two unarmed ICE officers, firing between 20-30 5.56 rounds. Footage of the shooting was recorded on the detention facilities cameras and the local officer’s body-cam.
After the shooting, an investigation revealed multiple AR-15 style rifles discarded at the scene.
A Johnson County Sheriff’s detective was informed that a red Hyundai van was seen fleeing the facility, and initiated a traffic stop. The officer detained and arrested Bradford Morris, who was allegedly driving with a handgun in plain view, and who was discovered with two rifles like those used in the assault on the ICE facility, along with two Kevlar ballistic vests, a ballistic helmet, and a radio.
Morris allegedly admitted that he transported people to the facility to “make some noise” and claimed ownership of the firearms found in his car.
Other deputies discovered seven individuals, some wearing body armor and some armed, fleeing the detention facility on foot, and took them into custody.
A search of the area revealed 12 sets of body armor, additional firearms and magazines, along with anti-ICE propaganda posters and flags, including flyers that read “Fight ICE terror with class war” and “Free all political prisoners.”
Early Saturday morning, deputies arrested another suspect found walking along the highway dressed in military style clothing, who allegedly told officers that he did not know where he was coming from.
Officers also raided Morris’ home, which they believed was used as a staging area for the alleged assault based on cell-phone data, and discovered additional firearms and body armor, along with another defendant who was arrested.
The defendants arrested in connection with the case include:
- Cameron Arnold of Dallas, Texas.
- Savanna Batten of Fort Worth, Texas.
- Nathan Baumann of College Station, Texas.
- Zachary Evetts of Waxahachie, Texas.
- Joy Gibson of Dallas, Texas.
- Bradford Morris of Dallas, Texas.
- Maricela Rueda of Fort Worth, Texas.
- Seth Sikes of Kennedale, Texas.
- Elizabeth Soto of Fort Worth, Texas.
- Ines Soto of Fort Worth, Texas.
Each of those defendants face three counts of attempted murder of federal agents and three counts of discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, with a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum term of life imprisonment.
Another defendant, Daniel Rolando Sanchez, has been charged in a separate but related complaint for allegedly obstructing justice by attempting to conceal and destroy evidence related to the incident. He also faces up to ten years in prison.
Though the Department of Justice (DOJ) report did not directly reference Antifa, the group was found with seeming Antifa-materials such as a flag that read “resist fascism, fight oligarchy,” and independent journalist Andy Ngo identified them as members of a North Texas-based Antifa cell.
Ngo also provided pictures of the defendants, and claimed that two of them, Morris and Arnold, both identified as transgender, and went by the aliases Meagan Morris and Autumn Hill respectively.
That information was seemingly corroborated by court records that acknowledged both feminine-sounding aliases for the male defendants.
