Nebraska sheriff exposes how DACA loophole put Trump and the nation in crosshairs of UFC terror plot

A Nebraska sheriff whose agency helped capture the alleged White House terror plot ringleader is calling out the immigration policies that allowed the suspect to stay in the country, arguing he “never should have been here to begin with.”

Speaking Friday on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom,” Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson detailed what led to the high-stakes arrest, and what he found most “frustrating” about the case.

“Alvarez never should have been here to begin with. He shouldn’t have been in Omaha or in Nebraska. He was an illegal immigrant who overstayed a visa in 2001,” Hanson said Friday.

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“Unfortunately, he was granted DACA status by the Obama administration in 2014, and I think we’re seeing now how that policy ultimately placed our nation and my community at risk,” he added.

Abraham Alvarez, identified in federal documents as the alleged “ringleader” of a plot to carry out a mass casualty event at a White House UFC event on June 14, is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who overstayed his visa, according to Homeland Security information previously obtained by Fox News Digital.

Earlier this week, the FBI and its law enforcement partners announced they disrupted the plot, which targeted the UFC Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn of the White House over the weekend. Major figures, including President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, were in attendance.

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Authorities have made several arrests in connection with the plot, which they say included using explosive drones to force a chaotic evacuation and steer crowds toward a waiting team of snipers.

“I mean, this terrorist plot could have endangered the lives of multiple people at the UFC 250 event at the White House that day, and it could have even endangered the life of the president,” Hanson added.

The sheriff revealed that the FBI had been alerted to the alleged terror plot days before it was scheduled to occur. Immediately upon realizing there was a Nebraska connection, the local FBI field office activated a Douglas County sheriff’s deputy embedded with the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

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“It was almost around the clock surveillance on Alvarez and the location at which he was staying, as well as other companion investigations which are occurring,” Hanson added.

He noted that authorities have identified more than 20 suspects potentially involved in the nationwide plot and that a follow-up investigation is underway to determine whether Alvarez was collaborating with anyone else locally or nationally.

“This could have been a terrible terrorist attack on our nation. And we want to make sure that not only our nation, but here in Nebraska, that our people are safe as well,” Hanson said.

Fox News Digital’s Robert Schmad and Katelyn Caralle contributed to this report.