FBI arrests two new suspects in foiled UFC White House plot

Federal investigators identified two more men allegedly involved in the thwarted plot to attack the UFC’s Freedom 250 event at the White House earlier this month, according to a Monday report from the Justice Department. Officials arrested William Lee Spartacus Falkner in Washington state on Friday, then Jordan Rincker in Missouri on Sunday, both on charges of conspiracy to commit murder.

Investigators initially confirmed last week that at least five people had been arrested in connection with the alleged plot. Tycen Proper was the first suspect in the plot officially identified by officials last week. The 19-year-old admitted to coordinating a planned attack on the government during the UFC event as a means of kickstarting a revolution in the United States, according to an FBI affidavit.

Co-conspirators planned to pose as protesters and assemble near the White House, bringing weapons, ammunition, tactical vests, and ballistic plates, according to the federal filing. During the demonstration, the group planned to deploy and detonate a drone carrying explosives over the UFC event to prompt an evacuation, then act as snipers and target politicians and wealthy individuals among the crowd fleeing the explosion.

Police arrested four more men allegedly tied to the plot last week after analyzing Proper’s cellphone data. Investigators found messages from Bryan Roa, Michael Thomas, Daniel Eskridge, and Abraham Alvarez discussing an attack on the UFC event, the DOJ reported last week.

What is known about the two new alleged conspirators? Proper communicated with fellow conspirators on the messaging app Signal after they initially made contact online. Investigators identified the two new suspects after analyzing Proper’s cellphone data, according to the DOJ. Message logs showed that Falkner discussed loading explosives on drones and configuring them to follow a flight path for maximum destructive impact, according to court documents. Falkner’s messages discussed launching the drone strike on one side of the event to force an evacuation from the other side, where co-conspirators would target attendees with sniper rifles, the DOJ said.

Investigators described Rincker as a sort of coordinator between co-conspirators by dispersing money and weapons among the group. Rincker allegedly accepted $1,200 from fellow suspect Alvarez to split among other conspirators in the plot, the DOJ said. CashApp transactions showed Rincker sent at least $100 to co-conspirator Roa for gas to drive from California to Washington, D.C. Records also showed Rincker gave a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun with an ammunition-filled bandolier to another accomplice.

Investigators said they also searched a home and storage unit linked to the 28-year-old and found at least three guns, a gas mask with a cartridge, night vision goggles, a thermal imaging scope, a shield, a ballistic plate, and a plate carrier with plates inside. Additionally, officials allegedly found gun parts and a Glock-style pistol with a magazine and ammunition, all of which was manufactured through the use of a 3D printer.