Antifa members convicted in Texas ICE attack sentenced to lengthy prison terms

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

An Antifa member was sentenced to 100 years in prison Tuesday following a guilty verdict in a plot to target an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Texas nearly a year ago. Several others also received lengthy prison sentences from the same attack.

Eight individuals were found guilty on terrorism-related charges in March, the first in the nation after President Donald Trump designated Antifa a domestic terror organization.

Benjamin Song, who was identified as the group’s leader, received the harshest punishment of 100 years in prison. Maricela Rueda was sentenced to 70 years in prison; Savanna Batten, Zachary Evetts, Autumn Hill, Meagan Morris, and Elizabeth Soto received 50-year prison sentences; and Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada received 30 years.

A ninth member, Ines Soto, who was also found guilty, is scheduled to be sentenced July 1.

The group was accused of being a part of the North Texas Antifa Cell. They were found guilty of rioting, using weapons and explosives, providing material support to terrorists, obstruction, and attempted murder, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas said.

The group was convicted of the attempted murder of an Alvarado, Texas, police officer and correctional officers at the Prairieland ICE Detention Center occurring on July 4, 2025.

The convictions came after a 12-day trial beginning Feb. 23, which included 45 witnesses and more than 210 exhibits.

The first conviction and sentences of its kind came less than a year after The Center Square asked the president if he would designate Antifa a domestic terror organization following the rise of left-wing political violence. In response, the president officially designated the group a terror organization a week later.

Several Antifa cells in Europe have since been designated foreign terror organizations.

The ICE Prairieland Detention Facility in Alvarado was attacked in an ambush shooting on July 4, resulting in one officer being shot and injured.

Homeland Security noted at the time of the indictment that “nearly a dozen violent assailants equipped with tactical gear and weapons” attacked the facility, which occurred days before another attack where a Border Patrol official in McAllen, Texas, was also shot and injured.

An additional seven were charged, while pleading guilty last year to one count of providing material support to terrorists. The group includes: Seth Sikes, Nathan Baumann, Joy Gibson, Susan Kent, Rebecca Morgan, Lynette Sharp and John Thomas.

At the time of the convictions, then U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the verdicts are just the beginning as the Trump administration continues to pursue accused Antifa members.

“Antifa is a domestic terrorist organization that has been allowed to flourish in Democrat-led cities – not under President Trump,” said 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.”

FBI Director Kash Patel, who initially announced the indictment in October, underscored the bureau’s commitment to tracking down Antifa cells.