Federal authorities have arrested five people accused of plotting coordinated bombings across Southern California on New Year’s Eve, foiling a major terrorist attack, according to the FBI and Justice Department.The suspects are alleged members of a “radical offshoot” of the Turtle Island Liberation Front (TILF), an extremist group driven by a “pro-Palestinian, anti-law enforcement, anti-government ideology,” according to FBI Director Kash Patel. In a post on”“Over the weekend, the FBI disrupted a credible, imminent terrorist threat and arrested FOUR individuals associated with the Los Angeles area. The individuals identified themselves as members of a radical affiliate of the Turtle Island Liberation Front (TILF), an extremist group motivated by pro-Palestinian, anti-law enforcement and anti-government ideologies. They were allegedly planning coordinated IED bombings on New Year’s Eve targeting five different locations “In the days since, the FBI New Orleans has arrested another FIFTH person believed to be connected to this radical TILF subgroup – which is also allegedly planning a separate violent attack.”Attorney General Pam Bondi said the arrests “prevented a massive and horrific terrorist attack” in Orange County and Los Angeles. She described TILF as a “far-left, pro-Palestinian, anti-government and anti-capitalist group” and said the suspects also planned to target Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and vehicles involved in President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration.According to federal prosecutors, the four suspects were arrested last week near the desert town of Twentynine Palms, east of Los Angeles, where investigators believe they were preparing to test improvised explosive devices in advance of the planned attacks. Court documents say the suspects brought bomb-making materials to a desert campsite, including PVC pipes, suspected potassium nitrate, charcoal, sulfur powder and ignition materials.First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said one of the suspects drew up a detailed plan to bomb multiple locations in Southern California. “It contained step-by-step instructions on how to build IEDs … and listed several targets in Orange County and Los Angeles,” Essayli said during a news conference.The four suspects, all from the Los Angeles area, face charges including conspiracy and possession of a destructive device, according to court documents.Separately, Patel said FBI agents in New Orleans had arrested a fifth person linked to the TILF who was allegedly planning a “separate violent attack.”Federal authorities said the investigation was ongoing.
