A third person has been indicted on a federal terrorism charge in connection with the July 4 shooting at a North Texas U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, court records show.
Seth Sikes of Kennedale, 22, was indicted Oct. 28 on one count of providing material support to terrorists after the shooting at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado that injured a local police officer. He has not entered a plea, according to court records.
KERA News reached out to his attorneys and will update this story with any response.
Court records allege a group of people dressed in all black — some armed — were setting off fireworks toward Prairieland and vandalizing vehicles, and correctional officers called 911. When Alvarado Police Lt. Thomas Gross arrived at the scene minutes later, several people began to flee on foot and ignore verbal commands, according to court records.
Then someone fired at Gross, wounding him in the neck or back, and allegedly fired at two contracted correctional officers as well. Gross has since recovered and returned to work.
Sikes was arrested with seven other defendants — Elizabeth Soto, Ines Soto, Nathan Baumann, Maricela Rueda, Joy Gibson, and Savanna Batten — about 300 yards from where the Alvarado officer was shot. The group was dressed in black, military-style clothing. Some had body armor, were covered in mud, armed and had radios.
According to criminal complaints, Sikes told the FBI and a Texas Ranger in an interview that he had seen a flyer in a Discord chat and drove to Prairieland by himself. He didn’t know anyone else who was at the detention center.
Sikes met with the group and only thought they would be setting off fireworks, according to court records. Once he heard gunshots, he walked back toward the cars the group had brought.
Sikes had a handgun in his waistband and a broken down AR-15-style rifle in his backpack when he was arrested. The rifle, police confirmed, was purchased approximately 10 days prior from a pawn shop in Grand Prairie.
Sikes confirmed the guns were his, but he said they were for his protection, he never pulled one out and had no intention to use them, according to the complaint.
Eighteen people have been arrested in connection with the Prairieland shooting, which prosecutors and law enforcement have called a “coordinated attack” and an “ambush.” Some defendants and their attorneys allege they had no intention for violence the night of the shooting, and they’re being politically prosecuted.
Sikes is the fourth person who has been indicted on federal charges in connection with the shooting. Autumn Hill and Zachary Evetts were also indicted for one count of providing material support to terrorists, along with three counts of attempted murder federal officers and employees and three counts of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
Although not explicitly mentioned in Sikes’ complaint, Evetts and Hill’s terrorism charges are tied to the group’s alleged “antifa” motivations. Short for anti-fascist, the government describes antifa as a decentralized network of groups that believe in anarchist or Marxist ideology and oppose the U.S. government.
It’s often used as an umbrella term for far-left beliefs and has been blamed for instances of violence during protests. Court records show the alleged shooter, former Marine Corps reservist Benjamin Song, was part of a self-described anti-fascist North Texas gun group that clashed with Christian nationalists at a protest two years ago.
Trump designated antifa a domestic terrorist organization in late September, the first use of that official designation in history. Some legal scholars and terrorism experts say antifa is more of an ideology and have called into question the validity of Trump’s designation and its role in prosecuting terrorism.
Hill and Evetts have pleaded not guilty and are set for trial later this month. Daniel Sanchez Estrada, who was arrested two days after the shooting in Denton, was indicted for corruptly concealing a document or record and conspiracy to conceal documents. His trial is set for Dec. 1.
Toluwani Osibamowo is KERA’s law and justice reporter. Got a tip? Email Toluwani at tosibamowo@kera.org.
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