Federal prosecutors say 2 Texas men made plans to take over a Haitian island

DALLAS (AP) — Federal prosecutors say two Texas men plotted to take over a Haitian island, one going so far as joining the U.S. military to acquire training for an armed attack, with the goal of killing all the men and using the women and children for sex.

Gavin Rivers Weisenburg, 21, and Tanner Christopher Thomas, 20, who are from the Dallas area, were indicted Thursday on charges of conspiracy to murder, maim or kidnap in a foreign country, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Texas. They were also charged with production of child pornography over allegations they persuaded a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct.

Attorneys for both men said Friday they will enter not guilty pleas.

“They never tried to do any of this,” said John Helms, who is Thomas’ attorney.

An indictment filed in a Texas federal court accuses the men of planning to recruit the homeless to join their coup in Haiti, buy a sailboat and seize power on Gonave Island, which has about 87,000 residents. It covers roughly 290 square miles (751 square kilometers) square miles and is the largest island surrounding Hispaniola.

Helms said that while he has not yet seen the government’s evidence, he thinks prosecutors “are going to have a real hard time” trying to prove that Weisenburg and Thomas actually intended to carry out such a plot.

David Finn, Weisenburg’s attorney, said he encourages everyone to “tap the breaks” and reserve judgment. He said people have been telling him it is “the craziest thing” they have heard, and his response has been: “Yeah, it is.”

According to the indictment, the two men worked on the plot from August 2024 through July and that preparations included researching weapons and ammunition and plans to buy military-type rifles. Prosecutors also allege that both men tried to learn the Haitian Creole language.

Weisenburg allegedly enrolled in a fire academy around Dallas to receive training that would be useful in the attack but failed out of the school. He then allegedly traveled to Thailand and planned to learn to sail, only to never end up enrolling in lessons because of the cost.

Thomas enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in January, according to the indictment, and told Weisenburg in a social media message that he had joined the military to further their planned attack. While in the Air Force, Thomas changed his assignment to Andrews Air Base in Maryland to help in the recruiting of homeless people in Washington, D.C., the indictment said.

The U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations was among the investigating agencies, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The Air Force did not immediately respond to an inquiry about Thomas’ service on Friday.

The men face up to 30 years in prison if convicted on the child pornography charge and up to life in prison if convicted on the conspiracy charge.