https://theintercept.com/2026/03/13/ice-protesters-terrorism-prairieland-antifa/ Skip to main content Support Us Support Us [ ] [Search] * Iran * Midterms * Justice * War on Gaza * Unmasking ICE * Chilling Dissent Support Us * Special Investigations * Voices * Podcasts * Press Freedom Defense Fund * Join the Newsletter * About * Contact Us * More Ways to Donate * Impact & Reports * Jobs * Become a Source * * * * * * * * * (c) THE INTERCEPT ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Terms of Use Privacy * Iran * Midterms * Justice * War on Gaza * Unmasking ICE * Chilling Dissent * About * Support Us Anti-ICE Protesters Convicted on Terrorism Charges for Wearing All Black The government won on most of its charges, including convicting defendants for moving a box of radical zines. [cropped] Matt Sledge March 13 2026, 5:25 p.m. Share * Copy link * Share on Facebook * Share on Bluesky * Share on X * Share on LinkedIn * Share on WhatsApp [Screenshot-2026-02-10-at-4] Collage: The Intercept / Photos: Department of Justice A federal jury handed prosecutors a mixed victory in the trial of nine protesters for their roles during or after a chaotic demonstration outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility last July, convicting eight defendants of terrorism charges but sparing some of them on attempted murder counts. The widely watched trial could serve as a bellwether as President Donald Trump's administration seeks to crack down on left-wing groups -- and the convictions could encourage prosecutors to bring more such charges. A top FBI official said in December that the agency is now treating "antifa" as a major domestic terror threat. "This is a sham trial, built on political persecution and ideological attacks coming from the top." In a statement posted online, a support group for the defendants said, "Everything about this trial from beginning to end has proven what we have said all along: this is a sham trial, built on political persecution and ideological attacks coming from the top." The Trump administration celebrated the verdict. "Antifa is a domestic terrorist organization that has been allowed to flourish in Democrat-led cities -- not under President Trump," said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. "Today's verdict on terrorism charges will not be the last as the Trump administration systematically dismantles Antifa and finally halts their violence on America's streets." The court case centered on a nighttime July 4, 2025, protest outside ICE's Prairieland Detention Facility that started with demonstrators shooting fireworks and spray-painting cars in the parking lot. Signal messages obtained by the government showed that the demonstrators believed that less confrontational protests against ICE -- such as one that had occurred earlier in the day at the same facility -- were ineffective. Some of the protesters had brought guns, which is legal in Texas. A police officer responding to the scene was shot in the neck by one of the protesters, Benjamin Song, who had brought an AR-15 with a trigger modified for a higher rate of fire. Most Read US President Donald Trump speaks with the media as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth looks on aboard Air Force One during a flight from Dover, Delaware, to Miami, Florida, on March 7, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images) U.S. Military Refuses to Endorse Trump Claim That Iran Bombed Girls' School Nick Turse A primary school in Minab struck in the first day of attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran on March 5, 2026. Pentagon Report: U.S. Military Fired Missile at Elementary School in Iran Nick Turse [The-Intercept-Iran-War-Lockdown-Image-2-e1773089318347] With World's Eyes on Iran, Israel Locks Down the West Bank Theia Chatelle The defendants said the protest was a peaceful demonstration meant to show solidarity, pointing to the megaphone that one member of the group brought to shout slogans to detainees. Prosecutors pointed to the guns, ballistic vests, and trauma first-aid kits they brought as evidence of malicious intent. Song was convicted of one count of attempted murder for shooting the officer, but acquitted on two other counts of attempting to shoot at two correctional officers. Song was also found guilty of discharging a firearm during a violent crime. Four other people accused of attempted murder counts were acquitted on those charges. Song faces up to life in prison. [IMG_3369_4ab993-e1773344503478] Related Wearing All Black at Protests Makes You Guilty of Terrorism, Prosecutors Tell Jury In a significant victory for the government, jurors convicted eight defendants on material support for terrorism charges for wearing black clothes to the late-night demonstration. That use of "black bloc" clothing was an antifa tactic that assisted in the shooting of the officer, prosecutors said during their closing arguments. The defendants convicted of providing material support to terrorists were Song, Autumn Hill, Zachary Evetts, Savanna Batten, Megan Morris, Maricela Rueda, Elizabeth Soto, and Ines Soto. They face up to 15 years in prison on that count. The same defendants were also convicted of riot and two explosives charges related to the fireworks. Hill, Evetts, Morris, and Rueda were acquitted on attempted murder charges that would have carried sentences up to life imprisonment. We're independent of corporate interests -- and powered by members. Join us. Become a member Join Our Newsletter Thank You For Joining! Original reporting. Fearless journalism. Delivered to you. Will you take the next step to support our independent journalism by becoming a member of The Intercept? [ ] I'm in Become a member By signing up, I agree to receive emails from The Intercept and to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Join Our Newsletter Original reporting. Fearless journalism. Delivered to you. I'm in Rueda and her husband, Daniel Sanchez Estrada, were convicted of conspiracy to conceal documents. That charge centered on Sanchez's movement of boxes containing radical pamphlets after her arrest. Sanchez was also convicted of corruptly concealing a document. The prosecution of the Prairieland defendants represented the federal government's first use of the material support charge against alleged antifa members accused of domestic terrorism. The prosecution was the government's first material support for terror charges against alleged antifa members. The verdict came after 10 days of testimony inside a Fort Worth courtroom packed with family members of the defendants, law enforcement officials, and journalists. Prosecutors called the wounded police officer and detention center guards to describe what it was like on the receiving end of a barrage of bullets, as well as four cooperating defendants who pleaded guilty before trial. Another significant witness was a researcher at a right-wing think tank who said the tactics used by the demonstrators that night, including "black bloc" clothing and the encrypted messaging app Signal -- the latter of which the witness said he also used -- were typical of antifa. This is a developing story and will be updated. Share * Copy link * Share on Facebook * Share on Bluesky * Share on X * Share on LinkedIn * Share on WhatsApp IT'S EVEN WORSE THAN WE THOUGHT. What we're seeing right now from Donald Trump is a full-on authoritarian takeover of the U.S. government. This is not hyperbole. Court orders are being ignored. MAGA loyalists have been put in charge of the military and federal law enforcement agencies. The Department of Government Efficiency has stripped Congress of its power of the purse. News outlets that challenge Trump have been banished or put under investigation. Yet far too many are still covering Trump's assault on democracy like politics as usual, with flattering headlines describing Trump as "unconventional," "testing the boundaries," and "aggressively flexing power." The Intercept has long covered authoritarian governments, billionaire oligarchs, and backsliding democracies around the world. We understand the challenge we face in Trump and the vital importance of press freedom in defending democracy. We're independent of corporate interests. Will you help us? ( ) $15 (*) $25 ( ) $50 ( ) $100 ( ) $5 ( ) $8 (*) $10 ( ) $15 ( ) One Time (*) Monthly Donate IT'S BEEN A DEVASTATING year for journalism -- the worst in modern U.S. history. We have a president with utter contempt for truth aggressively using the government's full powers to dismantle the free press. Corporate news outlets have cowered, becoming accessories in Trump's project to create a post-truth America. Right-wing billionaires have pounced, buying up media organizations and rebuilding the information environment to their liking. In this most perilous moment for democracy, The Intercept is fighting back. But to do so effectively, we need to grow. That's where you come in. Will you help us expand our reporting capacity in time to hit the ground running in 2026? We're independent of corporate interests. Will you help us? ( ) $15 (*) $25 ( ) $50 ( ) $100 ( ) $5 ( ) $8 (*) $10 ( ) $15 ( ) One Time (*) Monthly Donate [editor-in-] I'M BEN MUESSIG, The Intercept's editor-in-chief. It's been a devastating year for journalism -- the worst in modern U.S. history. We have a president with utter contempt for truth aggressively using the government's full powers to dismantle the free press. Corporate news outlets have cowered, becoming accessories in Trump's project to create a post-truth America. Right-wing billionaires have pounced, buying up media organizations and rebuilding the information environment to their liking. In this most perilous moment for democracy, The Intercept is fighting back. But to do so effectively, we need to grow. That's where you come in. Will you help us expand our reporting capacity in time to hit the ground running in 2026? We're independent of corporate interests. Will you help us? ( ) $15 (*) $25 ( ) $50 ( ) $100 ( ) $5 ( ) $8 (*) $10 ( ) $15 ( ) One Time (*) Monthly Donate Contact the author: [cropped] Matt Sledge sledge@theintercept.com @sledge.41 on Signal Related FBI agents remove evidence from a private home at 9638 Naomi in Arcadia on March 8, 2012. Federal officials on Thursday announced fraud charges against a man accused of selling $1.3 million in counterfeit wines. The U.S. attorney's office in New York alleges that wine dealer Rudy Kurniawan claimed he was selling rare vintage French wine at various audctions. He was arrested in Los Angeles by the FBI. (Photo by Gary Friedman/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) I Wrote a Movie Review. Cops Took It From A Protester's Home to Make the Case That He's a Terrorist. [Screenshot-2026-03-09-at-11] Islamophobic Think Tank Helped Write Indictment Against ICE Protesters The library is seen through a window during a tour to reveal the recent completion of Phase I of the Rensselaer County Jail in Troy, N.Y. Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011. Photo by Lori Van Buren/Albany Times Union via Getty Images) Prison-Style Free Speech Censorship Is Coming for the Rest of Us [crop_Patriot-Act-e1770234236854] "Terrorist": How ICE Weaponized 9/11's Scarlet Letter Latest Stories Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, speaks to members of the media outside a Gang of Eight briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, March 2, 2026. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US military would step up its military attacks against Iran, a stark warning after two days of strikes across the country that the Trump administration says took out its leadership targeted its ballistic-missile program. Voices Why Dems Keep Saying Trump Has "No Plan" Instead of Calling to End the War With Iran Adam Johnson - 3:51 pm By rallying behind process-based critiques, the Democrats are refusing to stand against the war on moral grounds. KHAN YUNIS, GAZA - MARCH 03: American emergency physician Aizad Dasti treat Palestinians under limited conditions at Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Yunis, Gaza on March 03, 2026 as he traveled to the region after disruptions to the healthcare system caused by Israel's attacks. Dasti said that on his first day at the hospital, a child died due to severe cold, adding that the humanitarian situation in Gaza, where thousands of families are struggling to survive in makeshift tents, is worsening by the day. Stressing that the health system urgently needs support, the doctor continues to provide care to patients and the wounded despite severe shortages, including basic medical supplies and emergency equipment. (Photo by Doaa Albaz/ Anadolu via Getty Images) Israel's War on Gaza Israel's Deadly Blockade Traps 7 U.S. Doctors in Gaza Jonah Valdez - 1:05 pm Doctors who went to Gaza said Israel's suspension of travel puts vulnerable patients at risk after years of genocide. FBI agents remove evidence from a private home at 9638 Naomi in Arcadia on March 8, 2012. Federal officials on Thursday announced fraud charges against a man accused of selling $1.3 million in counterfeit wines. The U.S. attorney's office in New York alleges that wine dealer Rudy Kurniawan claimed he was selling rare vintage French wine at various audctions. He was arrested in Los Angeles by the FBI. (Photo by Gary Friedman/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Voices I Wrote a Movie Review. Cops Took It From A Protester's Home to Make the Case That He's a Terrorist. Sophie Lewis - 10:55 am My little horror movie review was introduced to prove a conception of antifa that -- like many of the monsters we scream at in horror flicks -- isn't quite real. Join The Conversation * About * Support Us * Join Newsletter * Jobs * Contact Us * Policies * Terms of Use * Privacy (c) The Intercept. All rights reserved Enter your email to keep reading for free. This is not a paywall. [ ] I'm in By signing up, I agree to receive emails from The Intercept and to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. No ads. No corporate BS. Skip the propaganda and donate to keep The Intercept going strong: No ads. No corporate BS. Skip the propaganda and donate to keep The Intercept going strong: ( ) $15 (*) $25 ( ) $50 ( ) $100 ( ) $5 ( ) $8 (*) $10 ( ) $15 (*) One Time ( ) Monthly Yes, count me In We're independent of corporate interests. Will you join us? ( ) $15 (*) $25 ( ) $50 ( ) $100 ( ) $5 ( ) $8 (*) $10 ( ) $15 (*) One Time ( ) Monthly Yes, count me in