Federal Authorities Disrupt Alleged Plot to Attack UFC Freedom 250 Event on White House South Lawn

Federal authorities say they disrupted an alleged plot to attack the UFC Freedom 250 event held Sunday on the White House South Lawn, according to criminal complaints and affidavits unsealed Tuesday.

Prosecutors allege five men—Tycen Proper of Ohio, Daniel Eskridge of Missouri, Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez of Nebraska, and California residents Bryan Omar Roa and Michael Alan Thomas—planned to use explosive-laden drones to drive attendees from the venue before shooters targeted politicians and other "high value targets."

“On June 10, FBI and our law enforcement partners became aware of a potential threat to the UFC America 250 event in Washington, D.C. involving individuals outside of the National Capital Region,” FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X. “Thanks to the rapid action of this FBI, our partners, and the Department of Justice in a multi-state operation, multiple individuals are now in custody and allegedly planned attacks were stopped cold.”

By the time authorities foiled the plot, UFC Freedom 250 had drawn thousands of high-profile spectators, including President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and members of Congress.

The card also served as a showcase for the crypto industry, with Crypto.com, Exodus, World Liberty Financial, and Polymarket participating through sponsorships and promotions—including a $1 million CRO token bonus pool, along with $250,000 in USD1 stablecoins.

According to the filing, Proper told investigators that members of a TikTok group called "Vanguard of the Old" began communicating in March before moving discussions to Signal. The group, investigators said, planned to meet in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and travel to Washington, D.C., where drones carrying explosives would detonate over the UFC venue.

“Proper stated that the plan was for members of his group to act as snipers and additional shooters, preferably with long guns, staged at or near the southern evacuation point to conduct shootings of the members of the crowd and HVTs as they fled from the explosive devices which had just been detonated,” FBI Task Force Officer Christopher Betts wrote in the complaint.

Proper allegedly told investigators the goal was to "jump-start" a revolution in the United States.

The investigation began after Proper's family contacted law enforcement about his recent behavior, firearms purchases, and online activity. According to the filings, investigators recovered discussions involving sniper positions, drone launch sites, escape routes, safe houses, and other operational planning materials.

According to Proper’s mother, the group included members who claimed to be ex-military and Christian-based.

“Proper’s mother detailed that talking with these individuals online has caused Proper to lean heavily into his religion, and she believed that those individuals were using religion to manipulate and influence her son,” Betts wrote.

Among the group’s grievances were complaints about government corruption, the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, and the spread of AI data centers.

The allegations mark the second high-profile drone-related threat to major events in recent weeks.

On Friday, the Iran-linked hacking group Handala claimed it had accessed footage from FBI surveillance drones and made threats against teams participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, warning that first-person-view drones could be used against tournament participants.

Despite these threats, federal officials said the UFC Freedom 250 event itself was never at risk because of the investigation and law enforcement response.

“While the result represented the best of investigative work, it was also nothing out of the ordinary for this law enforcement team,” Patel said on X. “We are built to detect, respond to, and bring to justice those who threaten the lives of American citizens—particularly during large gatherings like the historic UFC 250 fight.”