The Department of Homeland Security said the man identified as the suspected organizer of the alleged plot against UFC Freedom 250 entered on a visitor visa and was later granted DACA; the charges are allegations and he is presumed innocent
The Department of Homeland Security said the man identified as the suspected organizer of an alleged plot against the UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House is a Mexican national who overstayed a visitor visa.
According to DHS, citing local reporting, the FBI arrested Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez in Omaha, Nebraska, on June 14 for his alleged involvement in a plan to carry out a mass-casualty attack against officials and others attending the event. The agency said four other alleged co-conspirators were arrested over the weekend in Ohio, Missouri, and California. The charges are allegations that have not been proven in court, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until convicted.
DHS said the Justice Department announced federal charges against the five on June 16. According to the agency, the FBI assessed that Alvarez — who allegedly used the alias “Shepherd” — was responsible for planning and directing the alleged attack, and that he discussed the plan in an encrypted group chat. DHS said Alvarez and his co-conspirators face federal charges of conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit violence on White House grounds, and that ICE has lodged a detainer for him.
In a statement, Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said the man was the alleged ringleader of the failed plot and that he and his co-conspirators now face the charges. Bis said he would face justice and be removed from the country.
According to DHS, Alvarez entered the United States on a B-2 visitor visa and did not depart before it expired in December 2001. The agency said the Obama administration granted him Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, in 2014.
