Secret Service officials are furious that FBI Director Kash Patel publicly disclosed details of a sealed, ongoing investigation into a plot to attack last weekend's UFC event at the White House, three people familiar with the matter said, arguing his Tuesday morning social-media post jeopardized roughly 10 pending arrests.
According to the accounts, the FBI and Secret Service had agreed to jointly unseal the case later that afternoon, once additional suspects could be identified and detained. Patel's post pre-empted that plan, the officials said, potentially tipping off others under investigation before agents could move on them.
The plot itself was alarming in its detail. Investigators say nearly two dozen people discussed in encrypted Signal group chats a scheme to fly explosive-laden drones over the White House South Lawn during the UFC "America 250" card on June 14, then use a pre-staged sniper team to fire on the crowd as it scrambled to evacuate.
A Secret Service advanced threat interdiction team, working with the FBI, identified the conversations and the people behind them. Authorities arrested one suspect on June 13 and moved immediately to seal the case so investigators could keep tracing the network and making arrests without alerting its members.
Federal prosecutors have since charged at least five people in connection with the alleged conspiracy. Officials told reporters the broader investigation remains active, and they declined to detail how many additional suspects they had hoped to apprehend before the case became public.
The friction marks another public clash involving Patel, whose tenure atop the FBI has drawn repeated criticism over the handling of sensitive cases. The Secret Service's complaint, relayed by people familiar with the agency's response, is that operational security was compromised for the sake of an early announcement.
Neither the FBI nor the Secret Service has formally accused Patel of wrongdoing, and the bureau has not publicly responded to the criticism. The event itself, part of the country's 250th-anniversary programming, went ahead under heavy security after the initial arrest.