8 Indicted Over Alleged Plot to Attack Trump's UFC Show

Eight men were indicted on murder and terrorism conspiracy charges Thursday for their alleged roles in a thwarted drone and sniper attack on the UFC cage-fighting show staged at the White House in June. The indictment, returned in Ohio, charges all eight in two separate conspiracies, reports the AP: one to provide material support to terrorists, and a second to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official. It remains unclear from the court records how close the would-be attackers could have come to being able to carry out the plan had it not been thwarted.

According to the new indictment, the plot began in May, when the group began amassing money, firearms, ammunition, body armor, explosives, drones, medical equipment, communications equipment, and other items. Law enforcement officials learned about a possible threat to President Trump's UFC cage-fighting show on June 10, four days before it was scheduled to take place.

The Justice Department last month announced a series of criminal complaints in different districts across the country in connection with the UFC plot, including from Ohio, Missouri, Washington, Nebraska, and California. The indictment announced Thursday represents an effort by the government to streamline the case and knit the defendants together into a single conspiracy prosecution in Ohio. Federal prosecutors allege that the group planned to murder Trump, JD Vance, Benjamin Netanyahu, Elon Musk, and "other high value targets" at the event. Officials have said the group members harbored fringe conspiracy theories and hoped the attack would destabilize the government.

One of the defendants told investigators that they planned to fly explosive-laden drones into the event and then shoot panicked crowd members as they fled, according to a federal affidavit. They communicated through online chat groups and forums and classified participants into tiers, with tier 1 participants committing "to put themselves in harm's way, break the law, and potentially go into hiding," according to the federal indictment. Members of the group also engaged in marksmanship and combat training. Conspiring to provide material support to terrorists is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and conspiring to commit murder carries a penalty of up to life in prison.