FBI Nabs Extremist Plotting Texas Capitol Massacre

Texas state police and federal agents arrested a man accused of planning an armed attack on the Texas State Capitol in Austin. Benny Caldera Jr. , 40, was taken into custody by Texas DPS SWAT officers around 3 a. m. Wednesday at his home in Converse, near San Antonio, after a friend alerted investigators to a worrying message from him. According to arrest documents, Caldera told the friend that if they did not see him again, it was because he was heading to the Capitol to shoot it up. NBCDFW reports the documents also say he voiced anger at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, saying its members had to be exterminated, according to Daily Wire.

Caldera was first charged with a felony count of making a terroristic threat against a public servant, with bond set at $75,000. By Wednesday evening, federal authorities had assumed custody of him. Court records show a 2023 arrest tied to possession of a firearm without a license.

Daily Wire links the case to a broader climate of hostility toward the pro-Israel lobbying group.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Daily Wire’s reporting. Read the full story at Daily Wire →