Alvarado ICE facility ambush trial: Witness describes group's Antifa beliefs, helping alleged shooter hide

FORT WORTH, Texas - Another witness who accepted a plea deal testified in front of jurors on Friday about her role in what happened outside the Prairieland ICE Detention Facility in Alvarado in July 2025.

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 detention center on July 4, 2025, allegedly under Song’s direction.

Song is accused of firing the shot that injured Alvarado Police Department Lt. Thomas Gross. Song allegedly hid in the woods for a night after the violence and was captured roughly a week later.

Defense attorneys have argued there was no ambush. They called it a planned noise demonstration to show support for the immigration detainees.

Trial Testimony Day 8

What's New:

The end of the second week of testimony saw another person arrested for their role in the alleged attacks take the stand.

Susan Kent said she provided material support to the alleged participants in last year's July 4 attack. She confirmed she signed a plea deal with the government to testify against the nine defendants.

Kent testified that she coordinated with others to help the alleged leader of the group, Benjamin Song, get out of the wooded area where he spent the night following the attack.

She read messages from the group's signal chat, which took place leading up to the incident.

"Song says, "It’s as easy a target as you can get. The guard shack is often unmanned,"

"Someone has to do something. We’re gonna make some noise."

"We’re not going to do anything dangerous, but let's be clear, I’m not going to jail."

Later in her testimony, a U.S. attorney asked Kent which of the defendants she believed were part of Antifa. She responded naming Song and several others.

During cross-examination, defense attorneys referenced jail interviews between Kent and investigators, where she asked for clarification as to what Antifa beliefs were.

"So you somehow went from not knowing what Antifa was to now naming these folks as part of it?" a defense attorney asked.

That prompted the judge to remind Kent that lying under oath was a crime, and if she did, she could face prosecution for that. 

What's next:

Kent has yet to be sentenced as a part of her plea deal. She faces a prison sentence capped at 15 years.

Several of the defendants currently on trial face up to life in prison if convicted. 

Their trial is expected to last about three weeks.

Continued Coverage

• Witness describes helping alleged shooter escape
• Defendants allegedly discussed guns, cameras & exit routes on Signal app
• Testimony focuses on "propaganda" evidence in suspects’ homes
• Witnesses, investigators testify on what happened
• Jurors view evidence, deputy body camera footage
• Jurors listen to 911 calls in Alvarado ICE facility ambush 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 call

Alvarado ICE Ambush

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.

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.

Crime and Public SafetyJohnson CountyTarrant CountyImmigrationTerrorism