U.S. federal authorities have released disturbing video footage after foiling a major terror plot targeting Los Angeles ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations. The FBI confirmed that four alleged extremists were arrested after investigators uncovered evidence showing them testing explosive devices as part of the planned attack. Officials say the suspects were under surveillance and were stopped before they could carry out any harm. The released video forms a key part of the investigation as agencies work to determine the full scope of the plot, possible networks involved, and whether additional threats remain. Security has since been tightened as the probe continues.
00:00So, as I mentioned in my talking points, on December 12th, a group of individuals, again, members of this anti-government group, traveled out to the desert to test their explosive devices.
00:13They had precursor chemicals there, and they were going to create these bombs in the desert.
00:22What they were starting to do is put their chemicals and wares and the components out on the table there.
00:30This footage that you're watching is from our surveillance plane.
00:33And then what happened after this is the Los Angeles FBI SWAT team, along with the FBI's hostage rescue team, moved in and arrested all four subjects without incident.
00:46So, as I mentioned in my talking points, on December 12th, a group of individuals, again, members of this anti-government group, traveled out to the desert to test their explosive devices.
00:59They had precursor chemicals there, and they were going to create these bombs in the desert.
01:09What they were starting to do is put their chemicals and wares and the components out on the table there.
01:15This footage that you're watching is from our surveillance plane, and then what happened after this is the Los Angeles FBI SWAT team, along with the FBI's hostage rescue team, moved in and arrested all four subjects without incident.
01:34Good morning, everyone.
01:34I'm Bill Asaley.
01:35I'm the head of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.
01:39Over the weekend, my office, along with the FBI, arrested members of a far-left, anti-government, domestic terror cell who self-identify as the Turtle Island Liberation Front.
01:52The individuals were arrested on Friday, December 12th, when the group attempted to construct and detonate IEDs out in the desert.
02:00In addition to the arrests, we executed several search warrants throughout the nation.
02:05I want to thank our partners at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Louisiana, U.S. Attorney Zach Keller, and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Lee Foley, for providing valuable assistance over the weekend with a very complex and coordinated search warrants that were done.
02:23The charges we are announcing today stem from the defendants and their co-conspirators' detailed, coordinated plot to bomb multiple U.S. companies on New Year's Eve.
02:36Thankfully, that plot has now been foiled thanks to the hard work of the FBI and the Department of Justice.
02:42This investigation was initiated in part due to the September 2025 executive order signed by President Trump to root out left-wing domestic terror organizations in our country, such as Antifa and other radical groups like the Turtle Island Liberation Front.
03:01As the President made clear, recent attacks across the country have highlighted the grave threats posed by these far-left domestic terror groups.
03:11These threats are sophisticated, organized campaigns of targeted intimidation, radicalization, threats, and violence designed to silence opposing speech, limit political activity, and direct policy outcomes,
03:27and prevent the proper functioning of a democratic society.
03:32In direct response to the President's order, the Attorney General issued a memo to our offices implementing and mobilizing federal law enforcement to prioritize and counter domestic terrorism and political violence investigations.
03:46As a result of those directives, we built this case.
03:50Both my office and the FBI have invested substantial resources into investigating and charging these organizations.
03:57And if anyone does not believe that members of these groups are organized, sophisticated, and extremely violent, let me tell you about the plot in this case.
04:09The four defendants are Audrey Carroll, 30 years old.
04:13The pictures, I think we have them somewhere.
04:16We'll put them up here.
04:17Audrey Carroll, 30 years old.
04:19Zachary Aaron Page, 32.
04:21Dante Gaffield, 24.
04:23And Tina Lay, 41.
04:25Each from the Los Angeles area.
04:27Each is charged with conspiracy and possession of an unregistered destructive device in violation of Title 26, United States Code Section 5861D.
04:38We intend to file additional charges in the coming weeks as we finish reviewing the evidence.
04:44The defendants are all radical anti-government members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front,
04:50which according to their own social media is an anti-capitalist, anti-government movement that calls for their associates to rise up and fight back against capitalism.
05:01One of the leaders of the organization, defendant Audrey Carroll, helped organize an even more radical faction of the group called the Order of the Black Lotus.
05:10Each of the defendants charged today was also a member of the Order of the Black Lotus.
05:16Carroll described this group to her co-conspirators as everything radical.
05:21As detailed in the federal complaint, which we will now make public, in November 2025, defendant Carroll created a detailed bombing plot to use explosive devices to attack five or more locations across Southern California on this upcoming New Year's Eve.
05:38Carroll and her co-defendant, Zachary Page, led the effort to obtain and build the bombs and to recruit others to join in their plot.
05:47Carroll's bomb plot was explicit. It included a step-by-step instructions to build IEDs or improvised explosive devices and listed multiple targets across Orange County and Los Angeles.
06:01Carroll also made clear her desires. She said, quote, what we are doing will be considered a terrorist act.
06:07Carroll and Page also discussed plans for follow-up attacks after their bombings, which included plans to target ICE agents and vehicles with pipe bombs.
06:17Carroll stated that those plans would, quote, take some of them out and scare the rest.
06:23Throughout early December, the co-conspirators discussed their plans during an in-person meeting in Los Angeles and through an encrypted messaging application.
06:31As part of the plan, the four defendants planned to build test bombs in the Mojave Desert.
06:37You're going to hear more details about the bombs they intended to build and how the operation went down in the desert.
06:44We'll hear shortly from the FBI assistant director in charge.
06:48In preparation for the plan, the co-conspirators purchased multiple pieces of bomb-making materials and discussed their travel plans to the desert.
06:55Last Friday, December 12th, the defendants took a significant step to carry out their plans.
07:01They traveled to the remote campsite, which you're going to see some video of, in the desert, and they began unloading their bomb-making materials to assemble and test the bombs.
07:10They had everything they needed to make an operational bomb at that location, and they were subsequently arrested by the FBI before they could build a functional explosive device.
07:23Shortly after the defendants were taken into custody, the FBI executed multiple search warrants, including at the defendant's Southern California residence and other locations throughout the country.
07:33I'll highlight some of the items found during those searches over the weekend.
07:38For example, in Carroll's residence, law enforcement found multiple posters and materials associated with Turtle Island Liberation Front, including posters stating, quote,
07:48Death to America, Long Live Turtle Island and Palestine, and, quote, Death to Ice, Turtle Island Liberation Front.
07:56In Page's residence, law enforcement found a copy of the detailed bomb attack plan.
08:01This case is another reminder about the dangers that radicalized Antifa-like groups pose to public safety and the rule of law.
08:11Through the tireless work of our prosecutors in my office and our law enforcement partners, which you will hear from today,
08:18we disrupted this terror plot before buildings were demolished or innocent people were killed.
08:24But this is not the end of our work.
08:26My office is committed to extinguishing the far-left terror threats that we face and will continue to work 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
08:35The four defendants arrested will make their initial appearance this afternoon at the federal court in downtown Los Angeles.
08:41They are each considered innocent until proven guilty.
08:44I will now turn it over to the assistant director in charge of the FBI, L.A. office, Akil Davis.
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