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Week 1 of Alvarado ICE facility ambush trial ends
The jury on Friday heard from one of the Texas Rangers who responded to the July 4 ambush at an Alvarado ICE detention center that left a police officer injured. FOX 4's Alex Boyer has more on the investigator's testimony in court.
FORT WORTH, Texas - Jurors on Friday heard from FBI agents, crime scene investigators, and one of the Texas Rangers who responded to the ambush at an Alvarado ICE detention center last summer that left a police officer injured.
Trial Testimony Day 4
What we know:
The nine defendants in this case – Daniel Estrada, Ines Soto, Elizabeth Soto, Maricela Rueda, Bradford Morris, Savanna Batten, Benjamin Song, Zachary Evetts, and Cameron Arnold – are each accused of attacking the Prairieland Detention Facility on July 4, 2025, allegedly under Song’s direction.
The violence culminated in gunfire that left a responding Alvarado Police Department Lt. Thomas Gross seriously injured.
Defense attorneys have argued there was no ambush. They called it a planned noise demonstration to show support for the immigration detainees.
What's new:
On Friday, jurors heard from Thomas Berggami, the warden of the facility, who testified that on the day of the attack, there was no one at the guard shack or patrolling the perimeter due to a staffing shortage.
Berggami testified there had been "peaceful protests" about once a month, but none had gotten "aggressive" until July 4, 2025.
According to the indictment, a group of people dressed in black and wearing masks, including some carrying firearms and wearing body armor, shot fireworks toward the center and vandalized vehicles and the guard shack.
Then, as local officers responded, one person yelled, "Get to the rifles," and opened fire, striking Lt. Gross.
One of the three Texas Rangers assigned to work the shooting scene also testified for the prosecution. He learned that Lt. Gross had a service weapon with a flashlight attached to it. Gross reportedly raised his weapon so that he could see in the dark, and that’s when he was shot.
"Do you think the actions Lt. Gross took that night were appropriate?" the prosecutor asked.
"It absolutely was," said Texas Ranger Hill.
"Was Lt. Gross being ambushed that night?" the prosecutor continued.
"Yes," Hill replied.
On cross-examination, the defense asked Hill whether seeing a person pointing a gun at the back of someone they know is unarmed might be alarming.
"I see how it could be scary," the Texas Ranger replied.
"Did you know Lt. Gross was the first one to pull a weapon?" the defense asked.
"No," Hill responded.
What's next:
Jurors will have Monday off. The prosecution will continue presenting its case on Tuesday.
The trial is expected to last about three weeks.
Several defendants face up to life in prison if convicted.
Continued Coverage
- Alvarado ICE facility ambush trial: Jurors view evidence, deputy body camera footage
- Jurors listen to 911 calls in Alvarado ICE facility ambush trial
- Alvarado ICE facility terrorism trial: Attorneys give opening statements
- Alvarado ICE facility terrorism trial restarts following mistrial
- Mistrial in federal domestic terrorism case over Alvarado ICE facility attack
- 9 alleged Antifa members face domestic terrorism trial for July 4 ICE facility attack
- First Antifa terrorism case: 5 plead guilty in Alvarado ICE facility attack
- Justice department must 'connect the dots' in first-ever Antifa indictment
- 9 'Antifa cell members' indicted in connection with Alvarado ICE shooting
- Alvarado ICE Facility Ambush: 21st person facing charges related to 'coordinated attack'
- Benjamin Song, 'Top 10' suspect in Alvarado ICE attack, captured in Dallas
- Alvarado ICE facility an 'easy target' for ambush, criminologist says
- Alvarado ICE facility attack: Blue Alert sent for military veteran suspected in shooting
- Alvarado officer shot in neck while responding to suspicious person callAlvarado ICE Ambush
Alvarado ICE Ambush
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PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Jurors see body cam footage in Alvarado ICE facility attack trial
On the third day of testimony in the Alvarado ICE facility terror attack, jurors viewed body camera footage from the night of the incident, as well as evidence recovered from a defendant's car. FOX 4's Dionne Anglin has more.
The nine defendants in this case are accused of participating in what federal prosecutors have called a planned ambush at the Prairieland ICE Detention Center on July 4, 2025.
Authorities allege fireworks were ignited, buildings and vehicles were damaged, and federal officers were fired upon. An Alvarado police officer responding to a 911 call was shot in the neck and survived.
Prosecutors contend the attack was orchestrated by members of what they describe as a North Texas Antifa cell and have labeled the case the first federal indictment in the nation tied to alleged Antifa-related domestic terrorism charges.
Benjamin Song, 'Top 10' suspect in Alvarado ICE attack, captured in Dallas
Benjamin Song, an FBI Most Wanted suspect believed to have attempted to murder three officers at an ICE detention facility in Alvarado on July 4, has been arrested.
The defendants have denied wrongdoing, and their supporters insist the gathering was a protest and that not everyone present participated in the violence.
Five other people arrested in connection with the incident previously accepted plea deals and are expected to testify as the trial moves forward.
First Antifa terrorism case: 5 plead guilty in Alvarado ICE facility attack
Five people who pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges for supporting an alleged "Antifa cell" attack on an ICE detention center now face up to 15 years in prison, marking the first time Antifa has been targeted with material support to terrorism charges.
The Source: Information in this story came from statements made in court today and previous FOX 4 coverage of this story.