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By Brian Hews
Publisher | Follow X
December 23, 2025
A federal grand jury has indicted four people in connection with what prosecutors describe as a suspected terrorist plot to carry out coordinated bombings in Los Angeles and Orange counties on New Year’s Eve, according to announcements this week by the U.S. Department of Justice and reporting by KABC-TV.
The defendants — Audrey Illeene Carroll, 30; Zachary Aaron Page, 32; Dante James Anthony-Gaffield, 24; and Tina Lai, 41 — are all from the Los Angeles area, federal prosecutors said. Each is charged with one count of providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists and one count of possession of unregistered firearms. Carroll and Page are also charged with conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction.
The Department of Justice announcement does not reference Cerritos College.
However, following the federal arrests but prior to the return of the indictments, Cerritos College proactively contacted Los Cerritos Community News regarding the case. In its email, the college acknowledged that an individual identified in media reporting connected to the federal matter had been described as affiliated with Cerritos College.
“At this time, there is no known threat to the Cerritos College campus, and there is no information indicating that any alleged activity was connected to the College or occurred on College property,” the college said in the email. The college added that because the matter is an active legal case, it would not speculate or comment beyond what has been publicly reported.
After receiving the college’s email, Los Cerritos Community News submitted written questions seeking clarification about the nature of the reported affiliation. The questions focused on administrative facts and internal processes, not the criminal allegations themselves. Specifically, the newspaper asked whether the individual was ever employed by the college in any capacity, including as an instructor, adjunct, contractor, or staff member; whether the individual had ever been enrolled as a student; when any affiliation may have begun and ended; whether the individual had access to campus facilities, systems, or students; and whether the college had conducted or initiated any internal review following the federal arrests.
In response, Cerritos College declined to answer the questions, stating that it would not “speculate on, confirm, or comment on allegations, the identities of individuals involved, or any information related to individual students or personnel records.”
The college again emphasized that there was no known threat to campus safety and directed inquiries about the federal case to the Department of Justice announcement.
A final clarification email sent to the college on December 16 reiterated the questions and requested confirmation of historical affiliation and any internal review. That email received no response.
As of publication, Cerritos College has not clarified whether the individual was ever employed by, enrolled at, or otherwise formally affiliated with the college; whether the individual had institutional access; or whether the college conducted any internal review following the federal arrests or subsequent indictments.
According to the indictment, the defendants are alleged members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front, described by prosecutors as an anti-capitalist and anti-government group. Carroll is accused of drafting an eight-page handwritten document titled “Operation Midnight Sun” that outlined a plan to bomb U.S. businesses across Southern California on New Year’s Eve. Prosecutors allege the document included intended targets, instructions for manufacturing explosive devices, methods for sourcing bomb-making materials, and guidance on avoiding detection.
Federal authorities allege Carroll later recruited the other defendants to participate in the plot. Investigators say the group obtained materials such as potassium nitrate, sulfur, charcoal, and pipes, and traveled to the Mojave Desert on December 12 to build and test explosive devices. The FBI arrested the suspects before any functional devices were completed, according to the Department of Justice.
All four defendants are being held in federal custody without bond. Arraignments are scheduled in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles in early January. If convicted, Carroll and Page face a potential maximum sentence of life in federal prison, while Gaffield and Lai face up to 25 years.
The federal case remains pending.
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