Feds say they thwarted New Year's Eve bomb plot in Los Angeles

CN) — Federal authorities on Monday said they stopped a New Year’s Eve bomb plot in Los Angeles devised by an anti-capitalist and anti-government movement.

The FBI said they arrested four people in connection with the plot — Audrey Illeene Carroll, 30; Zachary Aaron Page, 32; Dante Gaffield, 24; and Tina Lai, 41, all reportedly members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front.

“The subjects self-identified as members of a radical offshoot of the Turtle Island Liberation Front (TILF), an extremist group motivated by pro-Palestinian, anti-law-enforcement, and anti-government ideology. They were allegedly planning coordinated IED bombing attacks on New Year’s Eve, targeting five separate locations across Los Angeles,” FBI Director Kash Patel posted on social media.

An agent in a criminal complaint said that probable cause exists to believe they committed conspiracy and possession of an unregistered destructive device. The FBI claims they intended to detonate backpacks with improvised explosive devices at the five spots targeting two companies that affect interstate and foreign commerce.

More charges are expected in the coming weeks, said Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California in a press conference.

According to the agent, Carroll gave a document describing the bomb plot to a confidential source in late November. Page was also reportedly present at the meeting.

“The handwritten plan stated the ‘IEDs’ would be ‘complex pipe bombs,’ included instructions on how to manufacture the bombs, and included guidance to avoid leaving evidence behind that could be traced back to the co-conspirators,” the agent claims in the complaint.

Carroll and Page then reportedly recruited others, including Gaffield and Lai, all of whom took several steps toward enacting the plot. They got bomb-making materials and went to the Mojave Desert on Friday to test the devices, the agent said.

FBI agents descended on the group and arrested the members as they prepared the bomb-making items, they added.

Information from the confidential source led officers to determine the members used a group chat to discuss the plot and plan the Friday testing date.

The agent said Carroll operated an Instagram account for TILF, which posted content in favor of violence against U.S. officials.

“TILF also calls for the working class to rise up and fight back against capitalism,” the agent said. “Moreover, TILF advocates that liberalism and peaceful protest will be the downfall of those who believe it is enough, and that ‘direct action is the only way.’”

The bombing plot called for measures its members should take to avoid detection. They also reportedly identified New Year’s Eve as the target date because fireworks would make the explosions less noticeable, the agent said.

The plan called for using burner phones members would dispose of afterward. It also stated that they could make no mistakes, keep their hair tightly concealed and wear gloves to avoid leaving DNA traces, they added.

The members met on Dec. 7 to discuss the plan. An undercover FBI agent was present. At that meeting, Carroll said she had PVC pipes and potassium nitrate, the agent said.

“Page and Carroll discussed plans for future attacks after the New Year’s Eve bombings, namely, plans to commence targeting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (‘ICE’) agents and vehicles with pipe bombs beginning in January or February 2026, with Carroll noting ‘that would take some of them out and scare the rest of them,’” the agent said.

Then, on Dec. 12, they traveled to the desert. Carroll said the plot would be considered a terrorist act, the agent said.

Law enforcement arrested the group when they determined bomb making would soon occur. Items found at the scene included potassium nitrate and sulfur powder, the agent said.

“They had everything they needed to make an operational bomb at that location,” Essayli said.