The FBI stopped an alleged drone-and-sniper plot targeting Sunday’s UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House South Lawn and has taken five suspects into custody, officials told The Post on Tuesday.
Authorities said the alleged plan involved several stages. The first phase would have used drones carrying explosives to strike buildings near the event, creating chaos and sending people running from the area. Officials said the suspects then intended to force the crowd toward a sniper team that would be positioned to shoot fleeing attendees.
A second group of attackers allegedly planned to rush the White House gate after the initial panic, officials said.
President Trump attended the event with UFC CEO Dana White. The fight card took place on June 14, 2026, on the South Lawn, drawing thousands of people to the area around the White House.
Fox News Digital first reported details of the alleged attack plan.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the plot was “stopped cold” on June 10, when investigators carried out a search warrant in Cincinnati and made the first arrest.
Officials said some of the suspects later traveled to Fredericksburg, Virginia, on June 12 or June 13 as part of the alleged preparations.
Investigators reviewing one suspect’s iPhone found that at least 23 people using the encrypted messaging app Signal had been involved in conversations about the planned attack, according to officials. Those discussions allegedly included details about how the attack would unfold and how the suspects intended to target the crowd.
One suspect told investigators the goal was to attack “capitalist elites,” “billionaires” and politicians who had received money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, officials said.
Patel later praised the law enforcement response in a post on X, saying the case showed the ability of federal and local agencies to identify and stop threats before they could be carried out.
“While the result represented the best of investigative work, it was also nothing out of the ordinary for this law enforcement team,” Patel wrote. He said law enforcement agencies are built to detect and respond to threats against Americans, especially at major public gatherings.
The UFC Freedom 250 event was one of the highest-profile public events held in Washington that weekend. It coincided with President Trump’s 80th birthday and drew about 4,300 people to the South Lawn, including roughly 1,200 active-duty service members.
The event also brought a much larger crowd to the surrounding area. Officials estimated that between 80,000 and 85,000 fans attended a ticketed watch party on the Ellipse, just south of the White House. Thousands more gathered on the National Mall without tickets, hoping to see the seven-fight card on large screens set up for the event.
The alleged plot raised immediate concerns because of the size of the crowd and the location. The White House, the Ellipse and the National Mall were all packed with spectators, service members, security personnel and event staff. A coordinated attack using explosives and gunfire in that setting could have caused mass casualties and widespread panic in the center of the nation’s capital.
Security had already been heavy around the event. U.S. Marshals and other law enforcement agencies were visible near the Ellipse and around the fan areas before and during the fight card. Officials said that coordination helped prevent the alleged plan from advancing further.
The investigation remains ongoing.
