INTERNACIONAL
FBI reveals why Trump White House UFC event went ahead despite alleged terror plot
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EXCLUSIVE: As federal agents raced to dismantle an alleged plot targeting President Donald Trump’s UFC Freedom 250 event, investigators were simultaneously making another critical determination: whether the White House event itself could safely go forward.
In a Monday interview with Fox News Digital, FBI Deputy Director Chris Raia said investigators believed they had sufficiently disrupted the alleged conspiracy before the event took place, arguing that agents were monitoring suspects and knew none were in the Washington area when the UFC event was held.
«We absolutely felt very comfortable moving (the UFC event) forward,» Raia said. «We were confident that we had disrupted that main plot.»
The FBI initially arrested five people accused of participating in the plot to kill lawmakers and attendees at the June 14 event. Since then, prosecutors have publicly identified two additional defendants, raising questions about why the event was allowed to proceed while investigators continued pursuing other alleged participants.
5 CHILLING DETAILS FROM THE ALLEGED WHITE HOUSE ATTACK PLOT TIED TO UFC EVENT
Raia said the additional defendants were «followers» rather than leaders of the conspiracy.
«We were confident that we had the leaders, the main plotters of that, so the rest of the folks were more of the followers that you’re seeing now.»
«There was a lot of security there,» Vice President JD Vance said during a June 16 appearance on Fox News’ «The Five.» «And it turns out the plot was like, not that advanced. They weren’t in town.»
The five suspects charged in an alleged plot targeting President Donald Trump and other officials during the UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House. From left: Daniel K. Eskridge, Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, Bryan Omar Roa, Michael Alan Thomas and Tycen C. Proper. (Jacquelyn Martin- Pool/Getty Images)
The issue reportedly sparked tensions between federal agencies.
Two senior U.S. officials previously told Fox News that Secret Service leadership wanted to delay publicly disclosing the investigation until additional arrests could be made, fearing that revealing the probe could alert other subjects and complicate the ongoing case.
Raia said the FBI did not share those concerns, arguing that investigators were already monitoring both the alleged ringleaders and other suspected participants.
FBI NAMES SIXTH SUSPECT IN ALLEGED PLOT TO USE DRONES AND SNIPERS TO TARGET UFC FREEDOM 250 EVENT
«We had that contained or what I would call mitigated very early on even though we didn’t do the arrests,» he said. «We were watching the folks that were planning it. We had them under surveillance. And so we knew that nobody was even close to the DC area at the time that was happening.»
Despite reported disagreements over when to publicly disclose the investigation, Raia emphasized that the FBI and Secret Service worked closely throughout the case.
«That was a joint case with us and the Secret Service,» Raia said.
The agencies jointly assessed the threat before deciding the event could proceed, according to Raia.
«We all talked about that as a group and made that decision to move forward with the UFC 250 event,» he told Fox News Digital.
Deputy Secret Service Director Matthew Quinn, responding to questions about the case at an unrelated event, emphasized that the Secret Service had «led that investigation from the beginning» and suggested investigators intentionally avoided public disclosure while the case remained active.
«In order to maintain the integrity of the investigation and the security plan we chose not to leak it,» Quinn said during a June 16 press conference.
Raia, a career FBI agent and former head of the bureau’s New York Field Office, was appointed FBI co-deputy director in January after the departure of former Deputy Director Dan Bongino. Before leading the New York office, Raia served as one of the FBI’s top counterterrorism officials and has been with the bureau since 2003.
President Donald Trump seated between Dana White and the First Lady. (Evan Vucci/Reuters)
According to court records, the alleged conspirators first connected through a TikTok community known as «Vanguard of the Old» before moving their discussions to encrypted messaging platforms including Signal, Telegram and SimpleX. Investigators say members organized themselves into tiered roles that included frontline operators, drone operators, recruiters, logistics personnel and technical support.
Court records indicate the network extended well beyond the suspects initially charged. After obtaining a warrant for the phone of Ohio defendant Tycen Proper, investigators allegedly discovered a primary Signal chat containing approximately 19 participants, along with smaller operational chats organized by role and location.
Raia said the case is far from closed: 14 to 15 FBI field offices are assisting in the investigation.
«We’re going to continue to work that case aggressively,» he said. «You uncover one layer, and you see four more layers.»
The case also underscored one of the FBI’s biggest investigative challenges: encrypted communications platforms.
«That is a gap for us in encrypted communications platforms,» Raia said.
UFC Freedom 250 takes place on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Mon. June 15, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
Raia said investigators attempt to penetrate those networks through confidential human sources, undercover employees and other lawful investigative techniques.
«We try to infiltrate, obviously, with CHSs, UCEs, again, inside the bounds of the Constitution,» he said, referring to «confidential human sources» and «undercover employees.»
But Raia acknowledged the FBI does not have visibility into every encrypted chat where criminal activity may be occurring.
In the UFC case, he pointed to Proper’s mother as the catalyst who helped investigators uncover the alleged conspiracy before it could advance further.
«We had a concerned parent that really launched this entire UFC 250 case off,» Raia said. «Concerned parent called in on her son.»
The tip ultimately led investigators to Proper’s phone and the alleged network of encrypted chats that prosecutors say contained discussions about drones, sniper positions, escape routes and attack planning. Without that initial call, Raia suggested, the alleged plot may have remained hidden inside encrypted platforms that continue to challenge law enforcement visibility.
The UFC case also reflects what FBI officials say is a broader shift in the threat landscape. Rather than large, hierarchical terrorist organizations, investigators are increasingly concerned about lone actors and small groups that can organize online, acquire commercially available technology and develop attack plans with little outside support.
«I’m less concerned about a mass 9/11 style attack than I am a lone single person, a single attacker,» he said.
While discussing security preparations for the FIFA World Cup, he described drone-based attacks as one of the FBI’s top concerns and warned that tactics seen on battlefields overseas could eventually migrate to the United States.
Investigators say they saw signs that the alleged network may have been considering targets beyond the White House UFC event.
In a newly unsealed court filing, an FBI agent said he believed messages exchanged among alleged conspirators referenced a potential attack on a FIFA World Cup match scheduled for July 3 in Kansas City, Missouri.
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«I think that is a threat that is emerging,» Raia said. «We have seen that overseas, and it’s only a matter of time for somebody brings that type of attack, that threat vector here to the United States.»
The alleged UFC plot illustrates many of those concerns. Prosecutors say the group allegedly used encrypted communications, divided members into specialized roles, discussed drone operations and coordinated activity across multiple states without relying on a traditional terrorist organization or foreign network.
This story is part of Fox News Digital’s exclusive interview with FBI Deputy Director Chris Raia. Additional reporting from the interview will be published in the coming days.
Fox News’ Mike Ruiz contributed to this report.
fbi, counter terrorism, conspiracies plots, ufc, white house
INTERNACIONAL
“No se borra encontrar cuerpos de niños”: El lado humano del rescate salvadoreño en Venezuela
El relato de César Armando Marroquín, coordinador de equipos tácticos de Protección Civil de El Salvador, expuso en televisión la dimensión más cruda y humana del operativo salvadoreño en Venezuela tras los devastadores terremotos.
La vivencia de hallar cuerpos, especialmente de niños, marcó a los rescatistas y definió el tono de una misión atravesada por la empatía, la resiliencia y la solidaridad internacional.
“No se borra encontrar cuerpos de niños”, reconoció Marroquín durante la entrevista en el programa Frente a Frente, donde repasó las jornadas más duras y los aprendizajes de una labor que va mucho más allá de la técnica.
El equipo salvadoreño, integrado por 300 personas de distintas instituciones, llegó a territorio venezolano con el objetivo claro de salvar vidas y colaborar en la remoción de escombros.
La realidad superó cualquier expectativa: enfrentaron jornadas de hasta doce horas, bajo calor intenso, y el peso emocional de buscar sobrevivientes entre estructuras colapsadas.
Las imágenes de familias destruidas y la experiencia de rescatar cuerpos de menores quedaron grabadas en la memoria de los especialistas. “Las labores en edificaciones muchas veces son muy terribles, porque tienes que observar diferentes tipos de escenarios”, relató Marroquín ante las cámaras.
La vivencia de los rescatistas fue acompañada por una atención psicológica permanente. Según explicó el coordinador de Protección Civil, cada integrante del equipo recibió sesiones de soporte emocional tanto en Venezuela como a su regreso. “Se hace una interfaz de los momentos vividos con el actual para poder llegar a un contexto normal de su situación laboral”, detalló Marroquín en la entrevista recogida por Frente a Frente.
Además, el impacto de ingresar a espacios reducidos, encontrar cuerpos y, en ocasiones, rescatar personas con vida, exige una fortaleza emocional que solo se cultiva con preparación y acompañamiento.
El testimonio de Marroquín incluyó escenas de tensión máxima, como la operación de rescate de una mujer atrapada junto a su pareja fallecida. “Al encontrar vida, haces hasta lo humanamente posible, técnicamente, para extraerla”, afirmó el coordinador. La intervención del componente médico de Fosalud fue clave: personal entrenado en estabilización y rescate se internó en los escombros para asistir a las víctimas, controlando riesgos y evitando complicaciones médicas.
La solidaridad se manifestó no solo en la colaboración internacional, sino también en la decisión de no abandonar el terreno mientras persista la posibilidad de encontrar sobrevivientes o entregar cuerpos a sus familiares. “No es abandonar a un pueblo que lo necesita”, sentenció Marroquín, en línea con la instrucción presidencial de mantener la presencia salvadoreña hasta el final de la emergencia.
La misión ha sorteado numerosos desafíos, desde la complejidad estructural de los edificios hasta la presión de las familias por obtener noticias de sus seres queridos. La remoción de escombros requirió maquinaria pesada enviada desde El Salvador y el trabajo coordinado con autoridades venezolanas. Se estableció un hospital de campaña y se distribuyeron 155 toneladas de suministros médicos y de primera necesidad para atender las demandas inmediatas de la población.
El hospital de campaña permanece activo, brindando servicios tanto a heridos como a quienes sufren quebrantos emocionales tras la pérdida de familiares. En lo logístico, el equipo de Protección Civil implementó relevos operativos para evitar golpes de calor y fatiga extrema.
Desde su cama de hospital, Marlene Santana, sobreviviente de dos terremotos, relata con una sonrisa el momento en que los rescatistas le dieron agua a través de una manguera, y a la peculiar petición de una Coca Cola. (Infobae Centroamérica/EFE)
A pesar de la magnitud de la emergencia, todos los rescatistas salvadoreños regresaron sanos y salvos. Al regresar, los integrantes del equipo pasaron por controles médicos y recibieron apoyo psicológico para procesar las experiencias vividas.
El compromiso salvadoreño sigue vigente. La operación humanitaria continúa en la zona, con la presencia de personal médico, rescatistas y apoyo logístico para la remoción de escombros y la atención a la población. La experiencia en Venezuela, sumada a misiones anteriores en países como Turquía, fortalece la preparación de los equipos tácticos y deja un aprendizaje clave: más allá de la técnica, es la humanidad la que sostiene cada rescate y acompaña a quienes enfrentan el dolor de la pérdida.
corresponsal:Desde San Salvador, El Salvador
Senate resumes Todd Blanche confirmation hearing amid fiery testimony
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faces renewed scrutiny during his Senate confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill. Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway provides expert analysis on Blanche’s performance, highlighting his focus on law enforcement priorities and crime reduction. Senators question Blanche’s independence and prior actions in the Justice Department.
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The Trump administration took the fight over who controls U.S. attorney appointments to a whole new level, firing a Seattle-based prosecutor less than an hour after he was picked for the job without the blessing of the administration.
«District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them,» acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote Wednesday on X as he was testifying before the Senate in his confirmation hearing, calling out a U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington state panel for elevating Judge Roger Rogoff to be the top federal prosecutor in Seattle.
«WDWA judges abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration,» Blanche said. «Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President.»
That post came after Rogoff, 57, a former King County Superior Court judge and longtime state and federal prosecutor, was sworn in before 8 a.m. local time at the federal courthouse in downtown Seattle as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington.
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Judge Roger Rogoff spent 20 years as a state prosecutor and six as a federal prosecutor before becoming a state judge, and admitted he knew the administration might fire him immediately but did not reject taking on «the best job there is.» (Ted S. Warren/AP)
He then went to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and asked to meet with Charles Neil Floyd, the Trump administration’s preferred choice for the job, whose 120-day interim term expired in February.
While Rogoff waited in the lobby, he received an email notifying him that Trump had removed him from office.
Rogoff’s situation was not mentioned in Blanche’s Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday, but Blanche is back before the Senate again Thursday and Rogoff now might be a notable topic of discussion during his confirmation process.
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The quick dismissal came after all 17 active and senior federal judges in the deep-blue district appointed Rogoff to the vacancy. The judges, appointed by five presidents (10 by Democrats and seven by Republicans), had opened an application process after the administration did not send Floyd’s nomination to the Senate and instead kept him in place by making him first assistant U.S. attorney while leaving the top job vacant.
U.S. attorneys, who serve as the Justice Department’s chief federal prosecutors in each district, are normally nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Federal law allows the attorney general to name an interim U.S. attorney for 120 days. If that period expires without a confirmed nominee, district judges may appoint someone to serve until the vacancy is filled.
Because of obstruction by Democrats in the narrowly held Senate, the Trump administration has resorted to using acting titles and other personnel moves to keep its prosecutors in place. Courts have pushed back in several Democrat-heavy districts like Seattle and New Jersey, issuing legal challenges to the Justice Department and White House authority.
«I don’t think it’s the way to run the Department of Justice,» Rogoff told The New York Times. «When you have this sort of made up way of putting people in these positions, the process breaks down.»
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., opposed Floyd for the U.S. attorney job and blasted Rogoff’s quick firing.
«Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to public service, and he was appointed legally by the federal judges in the Western District of Washington,» Murray wrote in a statement. «This administration doesn’t want to deal with advice and consent — they just want to install cronies to carry out a corrupt political agenda.»
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Trump administration officials have long noted that the «advise and consent» role of the Senate does not grant Democrats against Trump’s administrative priorities to be a hard block on his agenda and nominees, though.
Rogoff has retained an employment law firm and is considering a legal challenge to his firing.
Fox News Digital reached out to Rogoff for comment.
The Seattle clash follows similar disputes elsewhere. In New Jersey, Alina Habba resigned as the top federal prosecutor after an appeals court said she had been serving unlawfully. In Virginia, Lindsey Halligan left an acting U.S. attorney post after a judge found her appointment unlawful and dismissed indictments she had brought against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.
The administration has also fired court-appointed U.S. attorneys in other districts.
Rogoff, who spent 20 years as a state prosecutor and six as a federal prosecutor before becoming a state judge, said he knew the administration might fire him immediately. Despite this, he said he had no qualms about the potential conflict he was walking into, because being U.S. attorney is «the best job there is.»
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«I’m really proud of my career,» Rogoff said. «The fact that the judges of this district — most of whom I’ve spent my career appearing in front of, or trying cases against, or working with — believed that I was the right person to do this work is just really humbling and amazing.»
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
justice department, todd blanche, politics, federal judges, white house
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