Two of eight men indicted for an alleged drone and sniper attack on a UFC event at the White House pleaded not guilty Thursday. Tycen Proper, 19, of Danville, Ohio, and Chandler Scaggs, 21, of Chapmanville, West Virginia, entered pleas before U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus Jr. in Columbus. Each faces charges including conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder on federal territory. Sargus set trial for Sept. 14.

The plot targeted UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn celebrating the nation's 250th anniversary. According to the indictment, the group began in May citing grievances about government corruption, data centers, and the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein files. They amassed firearms, explosives, drones, and body armor. The plan involved flying explosive-laden drones into the event and shooting fleeing crowd members. Law enforcement learned of the threat four days before the event.

U.S. Attorney Dominick Gerace II said the intervention disrupted the attack. Seven defendants were charged across multiple states; cases are consolidated in Ohio. Suspects harbored fringe conspiracy theories and hoped to destabilize the government. Four alleged conspirators charged in Missouri, Nebraska, and California, and two more in Washington and Missouri, are being moved to Ohio for a likely group trial.