A Chicago man has been arrested in connection with a planned violent attack at the UFC event at the White House on June 14.
According to the Department of Justice, 20-year-old Alexander Iniguez Mercado was allegedly an administrator and member of Signal messaging groups, where he appeared to communicate with others about planning a violent attack at the event.
Seven others have been charged in connection with the attack. Two individuals from Missouri and Washington, along with five from Ohio, California, and Nebraska, were taken into custody.
Prosecutors allege the group, which communicated on encrypted apps, selected some targets based on a belief that certain lawmakers had accepted money from pro-Israel lobbying organizations.
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According to Mercado's indictment, the day before the UFC event, a special agent from the FBI spoke with him regarding online threats to the event.
The agent asked if Mercado planned to travel to Washington, D.C., to participate in the attack, and Mercado allegedly denied such plans.
Mercado reportedly told the agent he did not want to meet and then uninstalled the Signal application on his phone, causing the data related to those messages to become unavailable.
“The safety and security of the President of the United States and all those under our protection is the U.S. Secret Service’s highest priority,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge James Morley of the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) Chicago Field Office.
Mercado is charged with obstruction of justice and, if convicted, could face up to 20 years in prison.
