FBI arrests 'Darkwitch' planning New Year's Eve attack in New Orleans

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, December 23, 2025

A fifth suspect in a far-left terrorist group’s New Year’s Eve bombing plot, a former member of the U.S. Marines trained in combat who uses the aliases “Darkwitch She/Her" and "Kateri The Witch," was arrested on his way to New Orleans with guns, a gas canister and body armor in the car, according to court documents. 

Micah James Legnon, 28, from New Iberia, Louisiana, has been charged with threats in interstate commerce after he allegedly planned to carry out an attack in New Orleans. Authorities suspect that Legnon is associated with members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front, an extremist group that planned to set off bombs in Southern California on New Year’s Eve. 

“On December 12, 2025, LEGNON, who was under surveillance by the FBI due to his affiliation with individuals plotting the Los Angeles bombing plot, was seen leaving his residence [...] in New Iberia, Louisiana,” the criminal complaint states. 

“Agents viewed LEGNON load what appeared to be an assault rifle and body armor into the Subject Vehicle at approximately 12:30 p.m. on that same date,” the document continues. 

Legnon is believed to have been part of the Signal group chat "Order of The Black Lotus,” which TILF reportedly used to discuss its bombing plot. Legnon allegedly operated under the username “Darkwitch” in the group chat, according to the complaint.

The complaint states that the Legnon now goes by she/her pronouns. 

Federal authorities stopped the suspect on Highway 90 as he drove toward New Orleans and executed a search warrant on his vehicle. The authorities discovered an assault rifle, a pistol, a gas canister and body armor, items that appeared to resemble the ones that appeared in a photo that Darkwitch had shared in the group chat. 

The FBI also executed a search warrant at Legnon’s residence, where they discovered sniper training manuals, SWAT training manuals, assault rifles and multiple rounds of ammunition, according to the complaint. 

Under the alias “Kateri TheWitch,” Legnon is believed to have shared a Facebook post on Dec. 4 that showed U.S. Border Patrol agents arresting an individual on a rooftop. In the post, the user declared: “S— time to recreate Waco tx with these f—. F— ice.” 

The post was shared on Facebook one day after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security began Operation Catahoula Crunch in New Orleans as part of an effort to remove criminal illegal aliens from American communities. On Thursday, the DHS announced that the operation had led to the arrest of about 370 illegal aliens, including individuals previously arrested for domestic abuse battery and driving while intoxicated.

Investigators believe that Legnon mentioned the possibility of recreating Waco was a reference to the Waco Massacre, an incident that involved a highly controversial ATF raid during the Clinton administration targeting the leader of a cult known as the Branch Davidians, which led to the deaths of innocent women and young children. 

“Given the nature of LEGNON's post and the historical context related to the events that transpired in Waco, Texas, it is a reasonable inference to draw that LEGNON, when making the post ... intended to convey a threat through interstate communications,” the criminal complaint states. 

Earlier this month, authorities announced that they had arrested four TILF members, foiling a bomb plot they had set for Dec. 31. 

The four individuals who allegedly planned to carry out the New Year’s Eve attacks were identified as Audrey Carroll, 30; Zachary Page, 32; Dante Gaffield, 24; and Tina Lai, 41.

According to U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California, the group self-identifies as “an anti-capitalist, anti-government movement that calls for their associates to rise up and fight back against capitalism.”

Essayli also said that Carroll created an “explicit” plan to bomb at least five locations across southern California, with the intention of enacting “follow-up attacks” on agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Authorities later arrested the group after they traveled to the desert to test their explosives.