DOJ vows to DISMANTLE Antifa networks after 8 militants sentenced for Texas anti-ICE terror attack

This was the first federal case in history where Antifa members were convicted of terrorism offenses. President Donald Trump issued an executive order designating Antifa as a terrorist organization in September 2025, and the Trump administration recently updated its counterterrorism strategy, which put the dismantling of Antifa and Anarchist groups at the forefront.

"The sentences handed down today make clear that Antifa terrorists who attack law enforcement and federal facilities will face swift and uncompromising justice," said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in a press release. "Their violent extremism has no place in our country, and the Department of Justice will continue to aggressively investigate, disrupt, and prosecute those who threaten law enforcement officers or undermine the rule of law."

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On July 4, 2025, the North Texas Antifa Cell organized and executed a terrorist attack at the Prairieland ICE facility. When the defendants arrived, they were dressed in Antifa's militant black bloc uniform with their identities concealed beneath facial coverings. The group began launching explosives and vandalizing government property.

They labeled their planned terrorist attack a "noise demonstration," which is a propaganda ploy used by Antifa groups to look nonviolent while committing crimes. The defendants were in possession of eleven firearms, body armor, and eleven military-grade first aid kits equipped with tourniquets and other items to treat gunshot wounds at the scene of the attack. Additionally, they placed their cell phones in Faraday bags to prevent tracking, according to the Department of Justice.

Benjamin Hanil Song, identified at trial as the group's ringleader, opened fire on an Alvardo police officer when he responded to the scene, striking the officer in the neck. He and another defendant called on more members to "get rifles." Song, who was sentenced to 100 years in federal prison, provided the firearms and recruited and trained members at gun ranges before the attack, prosecutors said.

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The majority of cell members were arrested by police shortly after. However, Song escaped and was harbored by affiliated members of the Antifa cell for more than a week before his capture.

FBI Director Kash Patel vowed to continue to dismantle Antifa networks following the sentencings. The FBI investigated the case.

"Today's sentencings show the FBI remains committed to identifying, locating, and dismantling Antifa and its funding networks across the country. Acts of violence against our law enforcement partners will not be tolerated, and we continue our work to protect communities across the country from domestic terrorism," said Patel.

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US Attorney Ryan Raybould for the Northern District of Texas, whose office prosecuted the defendants at trial, made it clear that Antifa terrorism has no place to fester in the state of Texas. "Their terrorist acts, attempted murder, vandalism, and explosives launched at a detention facility were a far cry from a peaceful protest or First Amendment expression," said Raybould, adding, "We will continue in this mission to hold others accountable who perpetrate such violence and fund these ANTIFA groups in the North District of Texas."

According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), violent attacks against ICE have increased by more than 1,300 percent since President Trump took office in January 2025 and ordered nationwide mass deportation operations, one of his campaign promises. Antifa and anarchist groups have targeted ICE facilities and federal immigration agents across the nation, most prominently in Portland, Oregon, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Newark, New Jersey.

Acting ICE Director David Venturella welcomed the convictions, saying the sentencings "send an unmistakable message: attacks on federal officers and facilities will not be tolerated."

"The men and women of ICE serve with integrity and courage, often in challenging and dangerous environments," he continued. "The calculated violence carried out by these Antifa cell members at Prairieland was an assault on law enforcement and an attack on the rule of law itself...Justice has prevailed. ICE will continue to stand firm against those who threaten our officers, our facilities, and our mission."

Tuesday's sentencings comes just one week after the US Attorney's Office for Minnesota indicted 15 Antifa-affiliated members with conspiracy to impede and injure federal officers for their alleged roles in organized anti-ICE violence. This is another first-of-its-kind case.

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