Texas Detention Center Shooter Sentenced to 100 Years; Co-Defendants Receive Decades in Prison

Eight demonstrators were sentenced to lengthy federal prison terms on Tuesday for their roles in a shooting at a Texas immigration detention center on July 4, 2025, in a case that prosecutors say represents the first terrorism-related charges brought against individuals associated with antifa under the Trump administration.

Benjamin Song, whom prosecutors identified as the gunman who opened fire and wounded a police officer outside the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, was sentenced to 100 years in federal prison. Song had been convicted of attempted murder in March 2026 after a nearly three-week trial and faced a minimum of 20 years up to life imprisonment. His defense attorney, Philip Hayes, stated outside the Fort Worth federal courthouse that Song, a former Marine with no prior criminal record, plans to appeal the sentence, calling it excessive.

The other seven defendants received prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years. Daniel Sanchez Estrada, convicted of corruptly concealing a document and conspiracy to conceal documents, faces up to 40 years. Several defendants who pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists rather than stand trial received up to 15 years. All eight were found guilty by a federal jury in March on charges including providing material support to terrorists.

Prosecutors argued that the eight are members of antifa, a decentralized anti-fascist movement that has been a target of the Trump administration. The defendants denied any affiliation with antifa, stating they attended the demonstration to show support for immigrants inside the detention facility. President Donald Trump signed an executive order last fall designating antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, though there is no domestic equivalent to the State Department's list of foreign terror organizations.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the case marks the first time the Trump administration has brought terror-related charges against individuals it believes are antifa members. Critics have warned that the case could have broad implications for First Amendment free-speech protections, as organizations operating within the United States are generally safeguarded by constitutional rights. Antifa is not a single organization but an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that confront neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.

In a related development, federal prosecutors last week charged 15 people in Minnesota with impeding the Trump administration's immigration enforcement efforts. Those defendants are accused of being antifa members who conspired to block arrests and deportations by setting up blockades and throwing chunks of ice at federal vehicles.