Benjamin Song: Charges, Trial, and 100-Year Sentence

Benjamin Hanil Song, a 32-year-old former U.S. Marine Corps reservist, received a 100-year federal prison sentence on June 23, 2026, for shooting an Alvarado police lieutenant during a coordinated armed attack on the Prairieland ICE detention center in North Texas on July 4, 2025. Federal prosecutors called Song the leader of a “North Texas Antifa cell,” and his case became the first federal prosecution to win terrorism-related convictions against people the government associated with the anti-fascist movement.¹

Song was convicted of attempted murder of officers and employees of the United States, three counts of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, providing material support to terrorists, riot, and conspiracy to use and carry an explosive. U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman and Chief U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor imposed the term, the longest handed down among eight co-defendants sentenced that day.

What Happened at Prairieland

The Prairieland Detention Facility in Alvarado, Texas, is operated by LaSalle Southwest Corrections and holds people in ICE removal proceedings under the Dallas Field Office.²

Just after 10:30 p.m. on July 4, 2025, at least eleven people arrived at the facility in “black bloc” tactical clothing, carrying eleven firearms, body armor, and military-grade first aid kits. Earlier that day, some of them had scouted the site. The group launched fireworks and explosives at the building and spray-painted vehicles and a guard structure.³

Correctional officers called 911. Alvarado Police Lt. Thomas Gross responded, and as he stepped out of his vehicle, Song, positioned in nearby woods, shouted “get to the rifles!” and opened fire, hitting Gross once. The round entered his shoulder and exited through his neck.⁴ At the same time, another participant fired 20 to 30 rounds at correctional officers standing outside. Gross returned fire and was treated at a Fort Worth hospital. No ICE employees were hurt.⁵

Ten suspects were caught at or near the scene. Song fled and stayed at large for nearly two weeks. The FBI captured him in Dallas on July 16, 2025, after a manhunt in which the FBI posted a $25,000 reward and Governor Greg Abbott added $10,000.⁶

Who Benjamin Song Is

Song served in the Marine Corps Reserves from 2011 to 2016 and received an “other than honorable discharge.”⁷ Associates cited by the Washington Post said he had trained left-wing activists in close-quarters combat and large-scale gunfights.⁸ At trial, prosecutors said he had acquired more than 50 firearms, including the two AR-style rifles recovered at the scene, one fitted with a binary trigger to increase its rate of fire.³

His prior brushes with the law did not lead to convictions. In 2020, he was arrested at an Austin protest after the death of Garrett Foster and charged with aggravated assault against a public servant. A grand jury no-billed the charge in 2021.⁹ In 2023, the New Columbia Movement named him in a civil suit tied to a Fort Worth drag brunch, alleging he provided armed security with the Elm Fork John Brown Gun Club. He was not criminally charged and was removed from the suit in July 2024.¹⁰

The Terrorism Charges and the Executive Order Behind Them

The prosecution in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas leaned on President Donald Trump’s September 22, 2025, executive order designating Antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization.” The order described Antifa as a “militarist, anarchist enterprise” and directed federal agencies to investigate and dismantle its operations.¹¹

No federal statute creates a standalone “domestic terrorism” offense, so prosecutors used existing laws, chiefly 18 U.S.C. § 2339A, which criminalizes providing material support to terrorists.¹² The Brennan Center for Justice said the administration has “no authority to designate groups as domestic terrorist organizations” and noted that the order cited no statute or constitutional provision.¹³

Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the convictions were the start of a wider campaign, stating that “today’s verdict on terrorism charges will not be the last as the Trump administration systematically dismantles Antifa.”¹⁴ FBI Director Kash Patel called the case the first to bring terror-related charges against people labeled as Antifa.¹⁵

What Prosecutors Said the Group Intended

According to the Department of Justice, the cell subscribed to an ideology “explicitly calling for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and the system of law,” and picked Prairieland because it held people awaiting deportation.¹⁶ Cooperating co-defendant Susan Kent testified that on July 3, Song held a “gear check” at a Dallas residence, told participants to bring rifles and wear black bloc gear, and floated “trying to break detainees out of the facility.” Kent said others rejected that plan.¹⁷ The group used Faraday bags, encrypted messaging with auto-delete, and pseudonyms to hide communications.

Song told the sentencing court a different story. He said the protest was meant as a “peaceful noise demonstration in support of the immigrants inside the detention center,” denied planning an ambush, and said he fired only after seeing an officer point a gun at another defendant. He rejected the label of terrorist and described his motives as anti-fascist.¹⁸

The Trial

The case almost stalled at the door. On February 17, 2026, Judge Pittman declared a mistrial 22 minutes into jury selection after defense attorney MarQuetta Clayton appeared wearing a T-shirt bearing images of Martin Luther King Jr., Shirley Chisholm, and other civil rights figures under her blazer. Clayton appeared to have worn it in honor of Jesse Jackson, who had died that morning. Pittman said “politics — as prevalent as they are, as divided as they are — don’t have any business here” and worried a verdict could be overturned on appeal.¹⁹ A new pool of 130 jurors was summoned, and trial restarted on February 23.²⁰

Over 12 days, prosecutors called 46 witnesses and introduced more than 210 exhibits, including encrypted app messages, location data, forensic evidence from recovered devices, surveillance footage, DNA, and fingerprints. Lt. Gross testified first. He said, “I knew my life was in danger,” and told jurors the wound still causes him pain.²¹

Seven cooperating defendants who had pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists testified for the government. Kent’s account of the July 3 meeting, including her testimony that Song said he was “not going to be arrested,” was among the most damaging.¹⁴ Under cross-examination she became emotional and said the case “did feel like persecution.”¹⁷

A contested piece of the government’s case was expert testimony from Kyle Shideler of the Center for Security Policy. It was his first time testifying as an expert. He acknowledged he does not use academic social science methods, does not submit his work for peer review, and works from open-source materials.²² The defense noted his employer has been called a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center and pointed to a September 2025 article he wrote titled “How to Dismantle Far-Left Extremist Networks: A Roadmap for the Trump Administration.” Shideler also testified he had supplied language that appeared in the indictment. Judge Pittman let the testimony in and admonished Shideler for evasive answers.²³

The defense rested without calling witnesses or introducing evidence. Judge Pittman ruled the defendants could not argue self-defense or defense of a third party. Prosecutors used Pinkerton liability, under which co-conspirators are responsible for foreseeable crimes of any conspirator, to argue that every participant was culpable for Song’s shooting of Lt. Gross.²⁴

The Verdict and Full Sentences

On March 13, 2026, after about two days of deliberation, the jury convicted all nine defendants who went to trial of riot, providing material support to terrorists, and conspiracy to use and carry an explosive. Song alone was also convicted of attempted murder of federal officers and employees and three counts of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. Four defendants — Cameron Arnold (Autumn Hill), Zachary Evetts, Meagan Morris (Bradford Morris), and Maricela Rueda — were acquitted of attempted murder and aiding and abetting the discharge of a firearm. Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada was convicted of corruptly concealing a document, and he and Rueda were convicted of conspiracy to conceal documents.²⁵

On June 23, 2026, Judges Pittman and O’Connor sentenced eight defendants to a combined 450 years:¹

Benjamin Hanil Song: 100 years
Maricela Rueda: 70 years
Cameron Arnold (Autumn Hill): 50 years
Savanna Batten: 50 years
Zachary Evetts: 50 years
Meagan Morris (Bradford Morris): 50 years
Elizabeth Soto: 50 years
Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada: 30 years

When Song tried to speak at sentencing, Judge Pittman cut him off, saying Song “obviously hasn’t accepted responsibility for his actions.”²⁶ Judge O’Connor called the attack “an assault on democracy” and said, “The need to deter this type of conduct is high.”¹⁵

Appeals and What’s Still Pending

Song’s defense attorney, Phillip Hayes, said Song will appeal the 100-year sentence.²⁷ By late March 2026, nine defendants had filed motions in the Northern District of Texas under Rules 29 and 33 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, seeking to overturn their convictions or win a new trial. Song’s team argued that “ground-strike” evidence tied to the attempted murder count was not preserved or tested. Christopher Tolbert, representing Savanna Batten, filed a separate motion alleging jury misconduct based on “loud noises coming from the deliberation room” and asked the court to question jurors.²⁸ At the time of sentencing, the court had not ruled on the motions.

One trial defendant, Ines Soto, was granted a continuance and is scheduled for sentencing on July 1, 2026. The seven cooperating defendants who pleaded guilty to a single material-support count — Nathan Baumann, Joy Gibson, Susan Kent, Rebecca Morgan, Lynette Sharp, John Thomas, and Seth Sikes — are set for sentencing the same day and each faces up to 15 years.¹

1
Department of Justice. Leader of Antifa Cell Members in North Texas Sentenced to 100 Years in Prison for Terrorist Attack on ICE
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ICE. Prairieland Detention Facility
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ABC News. Search Continues for Suspect in Ambush at Alvarado ICE Detention
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CBS News Texas. Prairieland ICE Facility Attack Evidence Released
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ICE. 10 Suspects Charged in July 4 Attack on Texas ICE Detention Facility
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Department of Justice. FBI Captures Alleged Prairieland Shooter Benjamin Hanil Song in Dallas, Texas
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Newsweek. Benjamin Song, Veteran in ICE Ambush
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Washington Post. Alvarado Shooting, Transgender, Antifascist, Immigration
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KERA News. Benjamin Hanil Song, Prairieland ICE Detention Center Shooting
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Fox 4 News. Benjamin Song Suspect in Immigration Center Attack Previously Sued Over Drag Show Counter-Protest
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The White House. Designating Antifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization
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Charity and Security Network. Trump’s Terrorism Designation of Antifa: Meaningless or Serious Threat
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Brennan Center for Justice. Trump’s Orders Targeting Antifascism Aim to Criminalize Opposition
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Department of Justice. Antifa Cell Members Convicted in Prairieland ICE Detention Center Shooting
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CBC News. US Texas Sentencing ICE Facility
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Department of Justice. Antifa Cell Members Indicted in Prairieland Shooting
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CBS News Texas. Final Key Witnesses Testify in Prairieland ICE Facility Shooting Federal Trial
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Texas Standard. Prairieland Shooter Sentencing
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KERA News. Judge Declares Mistrial in Prairieland ICE Shooting Trial Over Lawyer’s Politically Charged Shirt
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Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Prairieland ICE Detention Center Shooting Trial Mistrial
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KERA News. Prairieland Detention Center Shooting Trial Begins
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The Intercept. Prairieland Antifa ICE Protest Trial Expert Witness
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KERA News. Prairieland Detention Center ICE Antifa Terrorism Shooting Trial
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Courthouse News Service. Jury Hears Closing Arguments in ICE Facility Shooting Trial
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KERA News. Prairieland Detention Center ICE Antifa Shooting Terrorism Trial Verdict
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Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Prairieland Detention Center Sentencing
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PBS NewsHour. 8 Convicted of Terrorism Charges in Texas Immigration Center Shooting Sentenced to Decades in Prison
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Yahoo News. 9 Defendants in Prairieland ICE Detention Trial File Post-Conviction Motions