Two men from North Texas have been charged over violent plans that allegedly included an armed coup on the Haitian island of Gonave, according to the Justice Department. Gavin Weisenburg, 21, of Allen, and Tanner Thomas, 20, of Argyle, along with other co-conspirators, planned to murder all men on the island before taking control and enslaving the women and children as “sex slaves,” an indictment filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas says.
“The co-conspirators conducted research, reconnaissance, recruiting, planning, and sought training to effectuate their plan,” the indictment reads. “It was the goal of the conspiracy to take military control of the Island of Gonave by murdering all the men on the island and capturing all the women.”
Both men are charged with conspiracy to kill or kidnap persons in a foreign country and face one count of producing child pornography. The conspiracy charge carries a potential life sentence; the child pornography charge carries up to 30 years.
Weisenburg’s attorney, David Finn, told NPR his client will plead not guilty and urged caution, saying that while some factual basis exists for the government’s release, it could be misleading. Thomas’ attorney, John Helms, also said his client will plead not guilty and will be defended vigorously.
Federal prosecutors allege Thomas enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in January 2025 to gain military training “useful in carrying out their armed coup attack.” Weisenburg enrolled in the North Texas Fire Academy in Rockwall in August 2024 to train for the coup but failed out nearly six months later, the indictment states.
Prosecutors say the men began planning in August 2024 and communicated about the plot on social media. They allegedly took Haitian Creole language training, researched ammunition and weapons including military-type rifles, and planned to transport firearms, ammunition and explosives by sailboat. Weisenburg is accused of traveling to Thailand to enroll in sailing school in preparation for purchasing a sailboat and voyaging to Haiti.
The indictment also alleges plans to recruit and hire homeless people from Washington, D.C., to assist in the takeover; Thomas allegedly changed his basic training assignment from Ramstein Air Base to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland in March to facilitate recruitment in the capital.
Gonave Island lies about 30 miles northwest of Port-au-Prince and is home to roughly 87,000 people.
