Suspects who planned to attack the White House over the weekend sought to target lawmakers who received money from pro-Israel groups, according to federal law enforcement officials.
Five men were charged on Tuesday for allegedly plotting to kill government officials and others attending the Ultimate Fighting Championship event at the White House on Sunday, the Department of Justice said.
One of the suspects, 19-year-old Tycen Proper, was part of a Christian “ultra-religious and anti-government” group online, according to an affidavit filed by an FBI agent on Sunday. Proper’s mother called local police in Ohio about his recent behavior, which included communicating with the group and buying firearms. She said Proper mapped locations in the Washington, D.C., area and told her his group intended to conduct “recon” and “hit and run missions.”
Proper’s family members also said that he made “concerning statements” in recent months, such as “sympathetic comments about Adolf Hitler” and “antisemitic comments on Facebook,” according to the affidavit.
Proper admitted to investigators that his group planned a coordinated attack against the United States government during the UFC event. A search of his cell phone revealed that he specifically sought to attack lawmakers who received support from AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby.
Proper identified Republican Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn as a “possible target.” When asked why, he said, “She’s taken money from the Israel pro Israel lobby and supports them.”
He later sent a message that said, “These are people we’re going to focus on,” followed by images of West Virginia’s four Republican members of Congress, Sens. Jim Justice and Shelley Moore Capito and Reps. Carol Miller and Riley Moore.
The images of the lawmakers appeared to be taken from Track AIPAC, a website affiliated with the progressive movement that documents AIPAC’s financial contributions to federal officials. The images appeared to include information about how much money each lawmaker received from “pro-Israel PACs,” according to the affidavit.
Members of Proper’s group said the United States had to be “torn down so that it could be rebuilt” and that “people who were involved with Jeffrey Epstein should not govern the country.”
Proper has been charged with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States and attempted murder of an officer or employee of the United States, among other offenses.
The details of the plot prompted condemnation from New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a Jewish Democrat who has championed measures in Congress to defend Israel and send it military aid.
“This is a stark reminder that anti-Israel hatred has been far too normalized in our politics, with real and deadly consequences,” Gottheimer said in a statement, adding that “targeting Americans because of their support for the U.S.-Israel alliance stems from antisemitism.”
Officials in other federal law enforcement agencies have criticized FBI Director Kash Patel for revealing the early-stage investigation of the plot against the White House. Matthew Quinn, the deputy director of the Secret Service, criticized the disclosure without naming Patel in a press conference on Tuesday.
“I’ll tell you a phrase I learned early in my career in the New York field office, and that’s ‘Don’t choke on your own smoke,’” Quinn said. He added that “some” of the details revealed by the FBI were accurate, but the Secret Service “chose not to leak” its investigation as more suspects remain at large.
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