Five individuals tied to the “North Texas Antifa Cell” have pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists for their roles in the July 4 ambush on the ICE Prairieland Detention Facility in Alvarado, according to newly filed federal plea documents.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, a federal jury in Fort Worth indicted nine alleged members of the cell — and prosecutors charged seven more by information — in connection with the attack on the detention center that houses unlawful migrants held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The ambush left an Alvarado police officer shot in the neck and triggered a multi-agency manhunt.
According to the plea agreements, Seth Sikes, Joy Abigail Gibson, Lynette Sharp, Nathan Baumann, and John Philip Thomas each admitted to one count of providing material support to terrorists. The filings show that all five agreed to a set of stipulated facts detailing how the cell planned the operation, coordinated logistics, and communicated ahead of the July 4 assault.
The plea documents state:
“Beginning on or about July 3, 2025, and continuing until on or about July 4, 2025, in the Northern District of Texas, the defendant planned with others to provide resources and personnel, knowing and intending that they would be used to carry out acts of terrorism.”
The defendants admitted the violence was “calculated to influence or affect the conduct of government by intimidation or coercion, or to retaliate against government conduct,” according to the filings.
Federal documents also describe the ideological motivations of the group. In Baumann’s stipulated facts, he acknowledged:
“Baumann found that others who participated in the acts against Prairieland adhered to an Antifa, revolutionary anarchist or autonomous Marxist ideology that is anti-law enforcement, anti-immigration enforcement, and calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and the system of law.”
The filing further states:
“Antifa is a militant enterprise that advocates insurrection and violence to affect the policy and conduct of the U.S. government by intimidation and coercion.”
According to the plea agreements, several members conducted reconnaissance at the facility earlier in the day, shared information in encrypted messaging channels, dressed in black bloc attire to conceal their identities, and participated in the planning of the “direct action” set for the night of July 4.
Sharp and Thomas admitted that they were not present at the shooting but helped the suspected ringleader evade arrest for days afterward — including arranging transportation, lodging, and communication equipment.
Under the plea deals, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of up to 15 years in federal prison. They also continue to face state-level charges in Johnson County related to the same incident.
More defendants are expected to appear in court for plea hearings in the coming days, according to prior reporting by The Dallas Express.