First Antifa terrorism case: 5 plead guilty in Alvarado ICE facility attack
JOHNSON COUNTY, Texas - Five people pleaded guilty on Wednesday to terrorism-related charges after they were accused of supporting Antifa in the July 4 shooting at Alvarado ICE Detention Center that left a police officer wounded.
Antifa designation
What we know:
FBI Director Kash Patel has previously said the charges in Texas are the first time a material support to terrorism charge has targeted Antifa.
The charges brought by the Justice Department followed President Donald Trump signing an executive order that designates Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization. Federal prosecutors say an ‘Antifa cell’ carried out the attack that included gunfire and fireworks aimed toward the immigration facility.
Plea deals and sentencing
Seth Sikes, 22, Nathan Baumann, 20, Joy Gibson, 30, Lynette Sharp, 57, and John Thomas, 32, each entered guilty pleas to one count of providing material support to terrorists in federal court in Fort Worth.
They face up to 15 years in prison at sentencing.
Ongoing cases
Cases against others also charged in the shooting remain ongoing.
9 'Antifa cell members' indicted in connection with Alvarado ICE shooting
Nine suspects were indicted Thursday in connection with a "planned ambush" attack on officers at an ICE facility in Alvarado on July 4.
What they're saying:
Sharp's attorney, Erin Kelley, told the Associated Press that entering the plea was "step one in a long process" before the sentence is actually determined.
Big picture view:
Antifa, short for "anti-fascists," is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for left-leaning militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.
July 4 ICE detention attack
The backstory:
Outside the Prairie Land ICE Detention Facility on July 4, fireworks were shot off as federal property was damaged. A responding Alvarado police officer was shot in the neck, surviving his injury.
Justice department must 'connect the dots' in first-ever Antifa indictment
Nine people face the first federal Antifa-linked indictment in the U.S. following a July 4 attack on an ICE facility in North Texas that resulted in an officer being shot and a "complex" case designation.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by the Associate Press and previous FOX 4 reporting.