The alleged ringleader of the foiled plot targeting the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Freedom 250 event at the White House Sunday has ties to Central Nebraska.
Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, 31, of Omaha was one of five people arrested earlier this week in connection to a plot that would have set off explosive-laden drones near the event, causing a mass evacuation. A second wave involving snipers was also involved.
He also attended Cozad Community Schools, and was on the Cozad High School cross country team in 2013. In a press release, Cozad Community Schools confirmed that he graduated from Cozad High in 2014. No other details could be released by Cozad Community Schools, citing student privacy law.
After graduating from Cozad High, he attended The University of Nebraska at Kearney from 2014-2020. During his six years at UNK, he was involved in student government for two years, inducted into the Phi Eta Sigma honor society in April 2015, and served as a UNK Student Diplomat during his sophomore year. He graduated in the Summer of 2020 with a bachelors degree in Industrial Technology.
According to the criminal complaint from the U.S. Department of Justice, TikTok messages from Alvarez’s account tracked him back to an old church in the Saline County community of Western, approximately 20 miles southwest of Crete. On Sunday, FBI Omaha arrested Alvarez.
Alongside Alvarez, Tycen C. Proper, 19, of Danville, Ohio; Bryan Omar Roa, 24, of Calimesa, Calif.; Michael Alan Thomas, 32, of Pinon Hills, Calif.; and Daniel K. Eskridge, 32, of Kidder, Mo. were also arrested.
To read earlier coverage of the arrest, click here.