The FBI says it thwarted what could have been a catastrophic terror attack at the White House UFC event Sunday night involving explosive drones and snipers.
Fox News reports: “Five people were in custody as of Monday, and investigators identified 23 people as part of a potential network of plotters. The alleged plan involved using explosive-laden drones to hit buildings near the event, force a mass evacuation and steer crowds toward a pre-staged sniper team, officials said.”
“A ‘second wave’ was then allegedly planned to storm the White House gate.”
Todd Piro of Fox News said the plan “allegedly included explosive-packed drones hitting buildings near the event forcing a mass evacuation and then steering crowds – get this – toward a pre-staged sniper team.”
BREAKING: The FBI says it thwarted a drone attack targeting Sunday’s UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House South Lawn.
Five suspects are in custody after allegedly plotting a multi-phase terror attack that involved using explosive-laden drones to strike buildings near the… pic.twitter.com/VRjdAvzXu3
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) June 16, 2026
FBI Director Kash Patel announced: “On June 10, FBI and our law enforcement partners became aware of a potential threat to the UFC America 250 event in Washington, D.C. involving individuals outside of the National Capital Region – and thanks to the rapid action of this FBI, our partners, and the Department of Justice in a multi-state operation, multiple individuals are now in custody and allegedly planned attacks were stopped cold.”
The U.S. Secret Service “worked closely” with the FBI to probe the scheme.
“In the days leading up to this weekend, our special agents, mission support personnel, and technical security teams worked around the clock to identify those responsible and hold them accountable,” Secret Service Director Sean Curran.
“Equally important to our protective mission is ensuring accountability through the justice system. To that end, our formal comments regarding the specifics of this case will be made through court filings.”
Protective intelligence cases are on the rise, and our teams work tirelessly behind the scenes to investigate threats, identify those responsible, and ensure accountability. Statement from Director Curran on the events of this past weekend: pic.twitter.com/Oca3QVLg9o
— U.S. Secret Service Office of Communications (@SecretSvcSpox) June 16, 2026
Fox News added: “Investigators later uncovered Signal chats in which multiple people allegedly discussed attacking the UFC event. An initial review of one suspect’s iPhone identified at least 23 Signal users discussing pre-operational activity, officials said.”
“Some of those involved allegedly planned to travel to Fredericksburg, Virginia, on June 12 or 13 to prepare for the attack.”
“One suspect allegedly told investigators the goal was to target ‘capitalist elites,’ ‘billionaires’ or politicians who received donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.”
“This is very, very dark stuff,” said Vice President JD Vance on “Fox & Friends” reacting to the news.
“This is what happens when people turn the rhetoric up so loud that disagreeing with somebody is a cause for violence.”
“And I hate to say this, but it’s true. You see more political violence and violent rhetoric coming from the left than the right these days. Everybody has a role to cut this stuff out. But I think a lot of my Democratic colleagues in Washington have got to look themselves in the mirror and say, ‘Why is so much of this political violence coming from our side of the spectrum?’.”
WATCH:
VP JD Vance said the foiled UFC 250 attack plot is another sign of the country’s increasingly heated political climate. “This is what happens when people turn the rhetoric up so loud that disagreeing with somebody becomes a cause for violence,” Vance said, calling on leaders to… pic.twitter.com/obKQi1i9iT
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) June 16, 2026
In Europe for the G7 Summit, President Donald Trump was asked about the terror plot, and he responded to laughter, “I haven’t heard about, no. The attack I watched were the fighters.”
WATCH:
🚨 LMAO! REPORTER: Were you briefed on the planned terror attack on the White House during Freedom 250 UFC?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: “No. The attack I watched were the fighters.”
This man is pure gold 😭 https://t.co/RRXyEMu4ex pic.twitter.com/L6OlK9pzuY
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 16, 2026
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