8 North Texas antifa members sentenced to 450 years for attack

Eight members of the North Texas Antifa cell were sentenced to a combined 450 years in prison on Tuesday for a July 4, 2025 attack on the Prairieland ICE Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas. Benjamin Hanil Song, identified by prosecutors as the group’s leader, received 100 years; Maricela Rueda got 70 years; Cameron Arnold, Savanna Batten, Zachary Evetts, Bradford Morris and Elizabeth Soto each received 50 years; and Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada was sentenced to 30 years. Ines Soto received a continuance and was scheduled to be sentenced July 1.

The assault was coordinated and heavily armed, not a spontaneous protest. Masked people dressed in black vandalized vehicles and security cameras before gunfire broke out, and an Alvarado police officer was struck in the neck. The group brought 11 firearms, body armor and 11 military-grade first aid kits to the scene, while phone records showed some participants turned off their phones or used Faraday bags to avoid tracking. More than 50 weapons were seized in connection with the group.

Nine North Texas Antifa cell members were indicted in November 2025 on charges ranging from rioting to attempted murder. In Fort Worth, a federal jury convicted nine defendants after a 12-day trial that began Feb. 23, 2026 and included testimony from more than 45 witnesses and more than 210 exhibits. Seven others had already pleaded guilty to one count of providing material support to terrorists, bringing the total to 16 when guilty pleas are included.

The sentencing marked the first time defendants affiliated with Antifa were sentenced after President Donald J. Trump’s September 2025 executive order designating the group a domestic terrorist organization.