DHS: Alleged Omaha Ringleader of Terrorist Plot Is an Illegal Immigrant
by John Gage
(Picture credit Douglas County Sheriff’s Office)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed on Thursday that the alleged ringleader of a terror plot to assassinate President Donald Trump and high-ranking officials was an illegal immigrant.
Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, who was arrested in Nebraska over the weekend, was previously known from court documents to be a non-U.S. citizen, although his legal status initially remained unclear. DHS said in a press release that he is an illegal immigrant from Mexico.
“This illegal alien from Mexico should never have been allowed in our country. He was the ringleader of a failed terror attack targeting UFC Freedom 250 at the White House,” Lauren Bis, the acting assistant DHS secretary, said in a statement. “He and his co-conspirators now face charges of conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit violence on White House grounds. He will face justice and swiftly be removed from our country.”
DHS said Alvarez entered the United States on a B2 visitor visa, which expired in 2001. He was then a part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that then-President Obama created in 2014.
Congressman Mike Flood issued a statement regarding Alvarez, saying he was proof open borders threaten national security.
“The man arrested in Omaha for plotting a White House attack entered our country illegally. DHS said his goal with the attack was to be ‘as deadly as we can get,’” Flood said. “Open borders and unenforced immigration laws threaten our national security and the safety of Nebraska communities.”
Alvarez was charged in connection with a plot to target President Trump’s UFC Freedom 250 event held over the weekend. Alvarez faces two charges in federal court of conspiracy to murder and conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.
Federal officials announced that they have made five arrests and identified 23 suspects in the plot to target the event. The arrests included men in Ohio, Missouri, Nebraska, and California.
The alleged plot involved two waves, including an initial drone strike followed by a storming of the White House gate and snipers looking to pick off high-value targets amidst the fallout from the drone explosions.
According to charging documents, Alvarez was identified using his IP address, which law enforcement was able to identify from his TikTok account, where he went by the username “Shepherd.” Group members involved in the alleged plot used the messaging app Signal to communicate with each other and plan the attack.
In one Signal message, “Shepherd” appeared to list Trump and Vice President JD Vance as the top two targets the conspirators were looking to assassinate. According to court documents, the group’s goal was to “jumpstart” a revolution to overthrow the U.S. government.
— John Gage is the executive editor of The Plains Sentinel.