US authorities announced they prevented alleged attack plan aimed at the event UFC Freedom 250, which took place this weekend in Washington.
According to Fox News reports, five people were detained by Monday, while researchers have identified a total 23 persons which are allegedly linked to the plan.
According to the same information, suspects are allegedly planning the use drones equipped with explosives, targeting buildings near the venue. Authorities estimate that the purpose was to cause mass evacuation of the area and to direct the concentrated to places where they would be located snipers.
Officials involved in the investigation claim that there was and second stage of the project, which provided for an attack on White House portal after the initial hit.
The FBI was informed of the potential threat on June 10 and in collaboration with other agencies secured the necessary evidence to arrest a suspect in Cincinnati. During the investigation talks were identified in the Signal app, in which several people allegedly participated in discussing the company's preparations.
The examination of the mobile phone of one of the suspects led to the detection of at least 23 users of the application who, according to the authorities, exchanged messages about preparatory actions prior to the attack.
One suspect reportedly told researchers that the goal was to hit "capital elites", "billionaires" or politicians who received donations from the Committee on American-Israeli Public Affairs (AIPAC).