COLUMBUS — Danville’s Tycen Proper was one of two men to plead not guilty Thursday for their alleged roles in a planned attack on the UFC cage-fighting show at the White House on June 14.
Proper, 19, and Chandler Scaggs, 21, of Chapmanville, West Virginia, entered the pleas before U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus Jr. in Columbus.
The duo are among eight men who have been indicted on murder and terrorism conspiracy charges for their alleged roles in a planned drone and sniper attack, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.
All eight are charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official.
Sargus set a trial date for Sept. 14.
“What would have happened or could have happened, that’s never going to be clear, because, thank God, there was an intervention here and this thing was disrupted,” U.S. Attorney Dominick Gerace II said, according to the Associated Press.
“But, in my view, when I look at what’s been alleged there, it seems pretty likely that someone or multiple people were driving to Washington, D.C., to do something.”
An affidavit details that Scaggs was to be picked up by Proper to travel to Washington, D.C. Scaggs and others lost contact with Proper upon Proper’s arrest, but Scaggs allegedly indicated to the group that he was still willing to participate in the attack and made new plans for another co-conspirator to pick him up to travel to the UFC Freedom 250 event.
A full list of those charged in the indictment includes:
The indictment charges all eight men in two conspiracies: conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official. The indictment replaces the initial charges filed in criminal complaints in various Districts across the country.
According to the indictment, starting in May 2026, the defendants conspired to provide material support and resources to terrorists in the form of money, firearms, ammunition, body armor, explosives, drones, medical equipment, communication equipment, personnel and other services.
The eight men allegedly participated in online chat groups and forums on Signal, SimpleX, Discord, TikTok and Instagram.
Officials stated the investigation apparently began when Proper’s mom contacted local law enforcement officers.
The suspects allegedly intended to kill multiple politicians.
According to the FBI affidavit signed by Task Force Officer Christopher Betts, local authorities with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and Danville Police Department were dispatched to an address in Knox County on June 10 in reference to a disturbance.
The caller, identified as Proper’s mother, was concerned about her son due to his recent conduct, including firearms purchases and communicating with certain individuals online.
Proper’s father said the 19-year-old had “recently met random people online and had been planning “recons” with these individuals.”
His father said Proper was planning to leave during the weekend of June 13 to meet up with these online individuals.
His father also said Proper had also recently acquired camping gear, food, ballistic plates, a new shotgun, a rifle, “lots” of ammunition, extra magazines, and plate camera.
Proper allegedly spent approximately $3,000 of his 2026 high school graduation money to purchase the equipment.
According to Proper’s father, the young man recently quit his job to prepare to meet people he had been interacting with online. The father said they planned to conduct “missions” and “recons,” but he did not know the identities of the individuals.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office photographed the equipment Proper acquired. Law enforcement officials estimated the gear included thousands of rounds of ammunition, two plate carriers with AR-style magazines, an AR-style rifle, and a bullpup rifle painted with an American flag.
The family voluntarily turned the equipment over to authorities, according to the affidavit.
After that meeting, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office transported Proper to a local hospital. Deputies submitted an application for emergency admission based on homicidal ideation.
Knox County Sheriff’s Office contacts FBI on June 11
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office contacted the FBI on June 11 regarding its interactions with Proper.
During a telephone interview on June 11, with the FBI, Proper’s mother said her son had recently begun interacting online with an ultra-religious, anti-government group. The members claimed to have military backgrounds and a Christian foundation.
While she did not know the name of the group, she said members expressed grievances about government corruption, the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, and data centers consuming local water supplies. Proper’s mother said she believed the group was using religion to manipulate her son, noting he had recently “leaned heavily” into his faith.
In addition to the equipment and firearms Proper recently purchased, his mother said she observed him engaging in physical training. She initially believed the exercise was connected to his aspirations to join the military or law enforcement, but later learned it was related to the online group.
Proper’s mother said the communications largely occurred on her son’s cellphone, and she provided his phone number to authorities. She also reported seeing her son researching and mapping locations just northwest of Washington, D.C.
According to his mother, unknown individuals sent Proper additional images and maps through text messages and the Discord app, and she occasionally overheard him speaking to them.
When questioned about his activities, Proper reportedly told his mother he could not give specific details but said they were looking at multiple locations to conduct “recon” and “hit-and-run missions.”
Proper’s mother told officials she believed “hit-and-run missions” meant carrying out shootings and fleeing the scene.
Federal, local authorities conduct search warrant June 11
The FBI, coordinating with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, the Danville Police Department, and the Columbus Police Department, executed a local search warrant at the Proper residence on June 11/ Investigators at the scene found a large quantity of boxes of spent ammunition, fired cartridge casings and tactical clothing.
During the search, investigators spoke with Proper’s father and grandmother, who said he had become increasingly isolated from his family and spent most of his time online talking to unidentified people.
Family members also highlighted concerning statements Proper made in recent months, which included making sympathetic comments about Adolf Hitler and posting antisemitic remarks on Facebook.
The same day, authorities executed a local search warrant on Proper’s Apple iPhone, which was previously seized by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office to preserve evidence.
A preliminary search of the device revealed chats in Signal groups detailing plans to conduct an attack in Washington, D.C., with several unidentified co-conspirators. The shared files included detailed imagery and maps of the National Capitol Region highlighting sniper locations, potential drone launch sites, and other tactical planning.
Investigators conducted a consensual interview with Proper on June 11 at the medical facility where he was being held. The interview took place in an unlocked room with a caseworker present.
Authorities interview Proper in medical facility
During the interview, Proper admitted to planning a coordinated attack against the U.S. government with other individuals. He said the attack was targeted at an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event scheduled to take place on the White House lawn on June 14.
According to Proper, some members of the group began communicating around March 2026 through a TikTok group called “Vanguard of the Old.”
Group members stated they wanted to protect the United States, which they believed was headed in the wrong direction, and asserted that the country needed to be torn down so it could be rebuilt.
Members also expressed a desire that people involved with Jeffrey Epstein should not govern the country. To demonstrate their trustworthiness and commitment to the cause, members shared identification documents and videos of their workouts and physical abilities within the TikTok group.
The more serious members of the group, including Proper, later moved their communications to the encrypted messaging app Signal. Once there, they planned an attack for the June 14 UFC event at the White House.
Proper said he believed many of the group members had prior military experience. The group was structured into three tiers, with “Tier 1” members required to meet physical fitness standards and acquire equipment, including firearms and personal body armor. Proper admitted to being one of the team leaders.
Proper described the general plan for the attack to investigators. All members were to leave their homes on June 12 or June 13 to rendezvous in Fredericksburg, Va. Proper planned to drive to the meeting location with his weapons and body armor, including an AR-15 rifle, all of his ammunition, tactical vests, and ballistic plates. He also planned to bring extra body armor.
Proper also intended to pick up a group member along the way who was hoping to acquire a firearm from a friend or an employer. Investigators have identified that individual and believe he lives in West Virginia. Proper said that although he was not traveling to the demonstration with the intention of shooting people, several other group members were intent on violence.
Drones were planned in the attack, says FBI
According to Proper, the plan was to stage a demonstration on the north side of the White House. While the demonstration was underway, the group would fly small, unmanned aircraft — commonly known as drones — laden with unspecified explosive devices, which would detonate over the north side of the UFC arena.
The intent of the detonations was to force the crowd attending the UFC event and high-value targets to evacuate to the south. Proper said the plan called for members of his group to act as snipers and shooters. Armed with long guns, they would be staged at or near the southern evacuation point to shoot members of the crowd and high-value targets as they fled the explosions.
The targets included both wealthy individuals and politicians. According to Proper, the attack was designed to “jumpstart” a revolution in the United States.
A review of Proper’s cellphone also revealed chats in the SimpleX app, where he messaged co-conspirators regarding the June 14 attack.
Authorities search Proper’s cellphone and find Signal app chats
The search of Proper’s cellphone revealed chats in the Signal app that were consistent with much of what he described to investigators. On the phone, investigators found a primary, large chat consisting of approximately 19 individuals.
Additionally, there were smaller group chats of about four or five people. These smaller groups were organized by location and role assignments, such as shooters designated for specific areas.
A review of Proper’s cellphone also showed group members discussing exit, escape and evasion resources for the attack. These discussions included the location of a potential safe house as well as escape routes for group members after the attack. Some plans indicated that members of the group would travel from the White House area to the Potomac River, using the river to flee the region.
In messages sent on or about May 13, Proper stated, “I got a possible target Marsha Blackburn is senator for Tennessee.” In response to a question in the chat asking why they should target her, he wrote, “She’s taken money from the Israel pro Israel lobby and supports them.”
On May 31, Proper sent messages leading with the text, “These are people we’re going to focus —” and then sent images of U.S. Senators Jim Justice and Shelley Moore Capito, along with U.S. Representatives Carol Miller and Riley Moore.
The four images of the members of Congress appear to have been taken from the website TrackAIPAC.com and included information about how much money each lawmaker received from pro-Israel political action committees.
The president of the United States was scheduled, and did in fact attend the June 14 event. News reports and open-source reporting indicated that other politicians, potentially including members of Congress and Cabinet officials, would also likely be at the event.
According to employees at a store in Knox County, Proper entered the business on or about June 5 and purchased a bullpup shotgun. Firearms tracing records from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed the purchase.
