Shooter sentenced to 100 years in Texas ICE terrorism case; others get max

Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Jun 23, 2026

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FORT WORTH, Texas — Eight defendants from North Texas received the maximum possible sentences Tuesday for their roles in a domestic terrorism case in which they were found guilty of charges including rioting and attempted murder of a police officer at the Prairieland ICE Detention Center in Alvarado.

The defendants, whom federal prosecutors described as antifa operatives, were convicted after a 12-day trial in March and were sentenced in hearings with two judges in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth on Tuesday morning.

Benjamin Hanil Song, the defendant who was convicted of attempted murder for shooting and wounding an Alvarado police lieutenant during the July 4, 2025, incident, received a 100-year federal prison sentence.

Maricela Rueda was sentenced to 70 years, and Elizabeth Soto and Meagan Morris were each sentenced to 50 years.

Those four defendants were sentenced by Judge Mark Pittman, who oversaw the trial, and four others — Cameron Arnold, Zachary Evetts, Savanna Batten and Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada — were sentenced by Chief District Judge Reed O’Connor.

Another defendant, Ines Soto, will be sentenced at a later date.

Defense attorneys argued during the trial that the defendants planned a peaceful protest and noise demonstration with fireworks.

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