Another group of defendants tied to a protest that escalated into violence outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in North Texas last summer are due in federal court Wednesday for sentencing.
Two judges are set to sentence seven defendants — one convicted at trial and six who pleaded guilty before then — for their roles in the July 4, 2025 demonstration outside the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado or their actions afterward.
A 12-day trial starting in late February led to a mixed verdict in March. The Trump administration has framed the prosecution as the first of its kind against an “antifa cell” and part of its effort to treat far-left political violence as domestic terrorism.
The hearings are scheduled for the Eldon B. Mahon U.S. Courthouse in downtown Fort Worth, where the same two judges last week handed down lengthy prison terms to eight codefendants who opted for trial. The punishments ranged from 30 to 70 years, with the group’s alleged ringleader, Benjamin Song, receiving 100 years.
The defendants set for sentencing Wednesday — Seth Sikes, Nathan Baumann, Joy Gibson, Rebecca Morgan, Lynette Sharp and John Thomas — pleaded guilty to one count of providing material support to terrorists.
The last trial defendant, Ines Soto, will also be sentenced Wednesday. He was convicted at trial of rioting, providing material support to terrorists, conspiring to use and carry an explosive during a riot and using and carrying an explosive during a riot. He was not convicted of the attempted-murder or firearm counts that applied to Song.
Soto faces up to 60 years in prison, while the others face up to 15 years each. Susan Kent, the final defendant in the case, also pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists and is scheduled to be sentenced next week.
Prosecutors alleged the group carried out a coordinated attack on the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, south of Fort Worth, and had ties to antifa, though some defendants denied any connection at trial.
Defense attorneys sought to frame the case as one rooted in First Amendment activity. Some argued what happened outside the detention facility on July 4, 2025, was a demonstration aimed at delivering a “message of hope” to detainees in the center that spiraled out of control.
This is a developing story and will be updated throughout the day.