The federal government’s crackdown on an alleged domestic terror plot is widening fast. The U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday the arrests of two more men connected to a scheme to attack government officials and event-goers at the UFC Freedom 250 event held at the White House on June 14.
The new arrests — William Lee Spartacus Falkner of Washington state and Jordan W. Rincker, 28, of St. Joseph, Missouri — push the total number of individuals charged in the case to seven. Both men face charges of conspiracy to commit murder.
According to a report, Falkner allegedly played a key role in the drone component of the plot. Prosecutors say he conspired with others to procure and fly explosive-laden drones, and that communications revealed he had hands-on experience manufacturing and piloting drones. He reportedly discussed loading explosives onto them while configuring the aircraft for maximum destructive impact.
The alleged plan was chillingly coordinated. Drones would strike one side of the event, forcing attendees — including government officials — to flee toward the opposite exit, where co-conspirators would be waiting with sniper rifles and other weapons. Falkner and an associate reportedly discussed a “Work trip” ahead of the UFC event, and later communicated that the trip was “cancelled” after other co-conspirators were arrested.
Rincker’s role was equally significant. Prosecutors allege he possessed weapons and agreed to manufacture drone parts for the operation. He also allegedly accepted $1,200 in cash from co-conspirator Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez to distribute payments among other participants. He sent $100 via Cash App to a man named Bryan Omar Roa — described as gas money to drive from California to Washington, D.C., to pick up the so-called “drone operator.”
Rincker also handed over a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun to Alvarez during an in-person meeting in Omaha. In exchange, he received an arsenal of tactical equipment: an ammunition-filled bandolier, ballistic plate, face shield, 3D printer and filament, night vision goggles, binoculars, a wire checker, and a minicomputer.
Investigators didn’t stop there. A search of Rincker’s home and storage unit turned up a cache of weapons and gear that reads like a military supply list — including a FN Reflex 9mm pistol, an FMK AR1 eXtreme multi-caliber rifle, a Remington 597 .22 LR rifle, and a 3D-printed Glock-style pistol. Authorities also recovered ammunition, a gas mask, thermal imaging scope, plate carrier, additional ballistic plates, a 3D printer, and an off-grid mesh network device designed to allow secure communications without any cellular or internet service.
The breadth of the alleged conspiracy — spanning multiple states, involving drones, sniper positions, and sophisticated counter-surveillance gear — signals that federal investigators believe they were dealing with a serious and organized threat, not an idle fantasy.