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FBI on group involved in Alvarado ICE facility ambush
Nine defendants, allegedly led by a cult leader, appeared in court to face charges for the July ambush-style shooting of an Alvarado police officer during an attack at an ICE facility.
ALVARADO, Texas - Nine defendants charged in connection to an ambush-style shooting of a police officer at an Alvarado ICE facility appeared in court today.
An FBI agent testified that Benjamin Song fired 11 shots toward the Alvarado police officer and corrections officers at the Prairieland ICE Detention Center this July.
In all, 50 rounds and multiple weapons were brought to the facility.
Local perspective:
Cameras are not allowed inside federal court, but outside the courthouse there was a heightened police presence. The bomb squad responded to a bag left on the sidewalk by police and the media. It turned out to be landscape clippings.
In a courtroom on the second floor, 8 of the 9 defendants had a combined preliminary hearing. Federal prosecutors laid out their evidence that the group met at a residence for pre-attack planning meetings. Cooperating, the defendants told the FBI the alleged shooter, Benjamin Song, was a cult leader.
What we know about Benjamin Song, suspect in Alvarado ICE detention center attack
Benjamin Song, the man behind a statewide Blue Alert after a July 4 attack on an immigration detention center, was previously sued over his involvement in a counter-protest outside a Fort Worth drag show in 2023.
Big picture view:
At one apartment, Ines and Elizabeth Soto had a printing production with industrial copiers to produce anarchist materials. Prosecutors claim they were associated with both antifa and a left-leaning tactical organization called SRA.
They communicated with encrypted messages over the app Signal and worried about people with antifa who wear yellow vests and tried to maintain order.
Saying, "Send projectiles over the yellow vests."
Investigators also found messaging that "blue lives don't matter."
Dig deeper:
An FBI agent testified that on the evening of July 4, the defendants were all wearing black with masks, which made distinguishing them on Closed Circuit TV (CCTV) challenging.
He said that Zachary Evetts used a knife to damage vehicles, while others spray-painted them, popped tires and headlights, and damaged AC coils on personal vehicles at the facility. With others setting off fireworks, unarmed corrections officers called the Alvarado Police Department to respond.
Song fired 11 shots, one hitting the Alvarado officer in the neck. He has since recovered.
After the shooting, song got away and remained a fugitive for more than a week. When he was arrested at defendant Rebecca Morgan's apartment, he had access to three weapons as a fugitive.
Alvarado ICE facility an 'easy target' for ambush, criminologist says
Ten people face charges, including attempted murder of an officer, after a Fourth of July ambush at an ICE detention center in Alvarado left a police officer wounded.
The FBI agent testified that in addition to weapons, the defendants brought first aid kits equipped with tourniquets for gunshot wounds.
They also communicated over handheld radios and brought bags to block cellphone signals.
In total, at least 16 people were charged in connection with the attack.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by FOX 4's Lori Brown.