Two North Texas men indicted for alleged scheme to enslave Haitian island

Gavin Rivers Weisenburg, 21, and Tanner Christopher Thomas, 20, are charged with conspiracy to murder, maim, or kidnap in a foreign country, as well as production of child pornography, according to a memo released by the Justice Department.

A federal grand jury has indicted two Texas men over an alleged year-long plot to travel to a remote Haitian island, kill its male population and enslave the women and children.

Gavin Rivers Weisenburg, 21, and Tanner Christopher Thomas, 20, are charged with conspiracy to murder, maim, or kidnap in a foreign country, as well as production of child pornography, according to a memo released by the Justice Department.

According to prosecutors, Weisenburg and Thomas spent close to a year plotting an attack on Gonâve Island and its roughly 87,000 residents. The men allegedly intended to purchase a boat, sail to the island, “kill every man,” overthrow the local government and force women and children into sexual slavery.

In the unsealed indictment, prosecutors allege the two men took Haitian Creole classes from July 2024 to May 2025 to prepare for their trip, enrolled in the North Texas Fire Academy (Weisenburg) and U.S. Air Force (Thomas) and attempted to recruit men to join them on their plot online and in person between August 2024 and May 2025, particularly unhoused men from the Washington D.C. area.

The two are also accused of coercing a minor to perform sex acts on camera in August 2024.

Weisenburg was arrested in July 2025. It remains unclear when Thomas was taken into custody.

In a statement to local affiliate Fox 4 in Dallas, Weisenburg’s attorney labelled the indictment as merely an “allegation.”

“I encourage everyone to hold their horses and stay tuned. An indictment is simply an allegation,” David Finn said. “And while there is some truth to the allegations, I believe that it will become clear what actually did, did not, and could not have happened. If your initial response to the government’s press release was, ‘That sounds crazy, impossible, and absurd,’ you might be on to something important. Reserve judgement and don’t buy into the hype — at least not yet.”

Thomas’s attorneys say they will be entering a “not guilty” plea in court on Monday. 

If convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country, both men face up to life in federal prison. 

They face anywhere from 15 to 30 years if convicted on the lone child pornography charge.