2 New Jersey teens arrested in connection with alleged Halloween terror attack plot
(NEW YORK) — Two New Jersey teenagers have been arrested in connection with an alleged ISIS-inspired Halloween attack in Michigan that the FBI announced it had thwarted last week, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
The NYPD and FBI-Newark arrested Tomas Kaan Guzel, 19, before he could board a flight to Istanbul, the sources said.
A second 19-year-old, Milo Sedanet, was also arrested, according to sources.
Two other men, Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, were arrested on Friday for their alleged roles in the plot, according to court records unsealed on Monday.
They allegedly “used online encrypted communications and social media applications to share extremist and ISIS-related materials,” and allegedly used the term “pumpkin day” for their plans, according to the complaint.
According to sources, an NYPD undercover had been monitoring Guzel, who was allegedly in communication with those arrested in Michigan and others overseas. The group allegedly talked about an attack on the LGBTQ community in Detroit and about traveling to Syria to train with ISIS, sources said.
Guzel allegedly had planned to travel in two weeks to Turkey and onward to Syria from there, but it’s believed he got spooked after last week’s arrests and moved his flight up, sources said.
There were searches at his home in Montclair and also in Seattle as part of the investigation, the sources said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Theme park guests enjoy a ride on Stardust Racers within Celestial Park at Universal Epic Universe. Patrick Connolly/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
(ORLANDO, Fla.) — The family of Kevin Rodriguez Zavala, the man who died after riding a roller coaster at Universal’s Epic Universe theme park in Florida last week, remembered the 32-year-old as a roller coaster enthusiast, as attorneys for the family said they are conducting an independent investigation into his death.
Zavala became unresponsive while riding the new Stardust Racers roller coaster at the Universal Orlando Resort park on Sept. 17, according to a statement from Universal Orlando Resort. He was transported to a hospital, where he was declared dead, park officials said.
He died from multiple blunt impact injuries, according to the local medical examiner, who determined the manner of death to be accidental.
Zavala’s family has since retained civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who said they are conducting an independent investigation to get to the “truth” and determine if anything could have prevented his death.
“We have to know what happened,” Crump said during a press briefing in Orlando on Wednesday. “We have to get answers.”
Zavala’s father, Carlos Rodriguez Ortiz, said his son was born with a spinal cord atrophy. He used a wheelchair but was “not under any medical restrictions that would have prevented him” from riding the Stardust Racer, Crump said.
Zavala graduated with a bachelor’s degree in game design and loved to play video games, his father said. He worked as a job coach at the family’s business, which helped people with disabilities get job training and find employment, his father said.
“We are really proud of him,” his father said during the press briefing. “He was incredible.”
His mother, Ana Zavala, remembered him as a good son and friend who was an “angel.”
“I never put any limits on my son, regardless of what condition he had — he had no limits,” she said during the press briefing in remarks translated from Spanish. “He was raised like his siblings, no different. He was completely independent.”
She said he “loved theme parks” and roller coasters and was excited to go to Universal’s Epic Universe with his girlfriend, who got them the tickets and was with him on the ride that night.
“That last day, on the 17th, he was extremely happy all day,” she said.
His two siblings remembered Zavala as an amazing brother, as the family called for answers.
“I don’t want anybody else to feel like I feel right now,” his father said. “So please help me to get that done.”
Paul Grinke, an attorney with Crump’s firm, said they will be bringing together multiple experts, including in design, operations, manufacturing and construction, as part of their investigation. Crump also said they want to focus on restraints and will likely be advised by disability experts.
“We will find out what happened here, and we’ll try to make sure this never happens again, so that another grieving family is not standing in front of you,” Grinke said.
An officer who responded to the park around 9:20 p.m. on Sept. 17 for a “medical emergency” saw CPR in progress on Zavala “on the platform directly parallel to the ride tracks” for the roller coaster, according to an incident report released by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Zavala was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly after 10 p.m. that day, according to the incident report.
Zavala had ridden roller coasters “many times before without incident,” Natalie Jackson, an attorney with Crump’s firm, said during the press briefing.
He had been sitting at the front of the ride, according to Crump.
Based on witness reports, Jackson said they learned that Zavala “suffered repeated head injuries during the ride and was unconscious for the majority” of the ride. Crump said Zavala hit himself against metal on the ride.
An internal review found that the ride systems “functioned as intended,” the “equipment was intact” during the ride and park employees followed procedures, according to a memo sent in the wake of Zavala’s death from Universal Orlando Resort President Karen Irwin to staff.
A Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News on Wednesday that the department’s current findings’ “align with those shared by Universal after monitoring the same tests and reviewing the same information.”
The state’s investigation remains ongoing, the spokesperson said.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office is also conducting an investigation into the incident, and Universal is conducting a “comprehensive review process in cooperation with the ride manufacturer of record,” Irwin said.
“Safety is, and always will be, at the forefront of everything we do,” she said in the memo.
The ride, which opened in May along with the rest of the Epic Universe theme park, reaches speeds of up to 62 mph and heights up to 133 feet. It remains closed in the wake of Zavala’s death amid the investigations.
“We are devastated by this event and extend our sincerest sympathies to the guest’s loved ones,” Universal Orlando Resort said in a statement last week. “We are fully committed to cooperating with this ongoing investigation.”
Crump’s firm also represented the family of 14-year-old Tyre Sampson, who fell to his death while riding the since-dismantled Orlando FreeFall ride at ICON Park in 2022.
“It’s really shocking to me that two years after Tyre Sampson, that we’re here at another tragic death related to an amusement ride,” Crump said. “It is troubling. We have to get this right. We can’t have a third time. We just can’t.”
(NEW YORK) — The first snow of the season struck the Midwest this weekend, and more snow is on the way for the North in the next few days while freeze warnings hit the South.
The snow forecast
Very heavy snow — at rates of 2 inches per hour — fell overnight in Valparaiso, Indiana, with more than 9 inches of snow reported as of early Monday.
South Bend, Indiana, has reported more than 8 inches of snow, while more than 1 foot of snow has fallen in some parts of Michigan and Wisconsin.
Chicagoans are waking up to 1 to 2 inches of snow, with another brief round of light snow expected Monday morning.
This lake effect snow event will continue along eastern and southern Lake Michigan through Monday afternoon. Some areas along the eastern side of Lake Michigan could get more than 6 inches of snow on Monday.
One to 2 inches of snow is possible in Indianapolis, and even Louisville, Kentucky, could get up to 1 inch of snow.
In the Smoky Mountains, places like Gatlinburg, Tennessee, could see up to 8 inches of snow, and higher elevations could get up to 15 inches of snow and strong wind gusts.
Further east, areas downwind of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario will see major lake effect snow on Monday night.
The deep freeze forecast
Parts of the South are waking up to their coldest weather of the season on Monday, with temperatures dropping below freezing in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
Dozens of daily record low temperatures are possible across the Southeast on Tuesday morning. The temperature is forecast to plunge to 28 degrees in Wilmington, North Carolina; 31 degrees in Savannah, Georgia; 30 degrees in Mobile, Alabama; and 26 degrees in Montgomery, Alabama. Even Miami is forecast to drop to 48 degrees.
CEO of Turning Point USA Charlie Kirk speaks on stage on the first day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 15, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Days before a memorial service for Charlie Kirk, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed a “National Day of Remembrance” for the conservative influencer after he was killed on Sept. 10.
The Senate on Thursday unanimously approved a resolution marking Oct. 14, 2025 — Kirk’s birthday — a “National Day of Remembrance for Charlie Kirk.”
While on the Senate floor, Sen. Rick Scott, the Florida Republican leading the passage of the resolution, said he is “proud to have the support of more than 20 of my colleagues to honor Charlie by dedicating his birthday” as this day of remembrance.
“Charlie was a good man — a devout husband, father, and friend. His life was shaped by his faith and the idea that in America, debate and discussion are crucial to the betterment of our country,” Scott said on Thursday.
In the approved resolution, the Senate “recognizes Charlie Kirk for his contributions to civic education and public service” and “encourages educational institutions, civic organizations and citizens across the United States to observe this day.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Thursday that the House of Representative will “soon pass a resolution honoring the life and legacy of our friend Charlie Kirk, and condemning the political violence that led to his untimely passing.”
On Friday, the House also approved the resolution, despite 96 Democrats declining to support it.
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose husband Paul was the victim to political violence himself, was among the 22 Democrats who walked out without voting on the Kirk resolution, but did vote on the short-term government funding bill. Four Republicans also skipped the vote.
“We passed a resolution to honor the life and legacy of Charlie Kirk, my late friend, the friend of so many in this chamber, and we called out political violence in America,” Johnson told reporters following the vote.
The conservative influencer was shot and killed on Sept. 10 while speaking at an outdoor event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
After a two-day manhunt, Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested for allegedly shooting Kirk and charged on Tuesday with a slew of offenses, including aggravated murder, with prosecutors announcing the intent to seek the death penalty.
He was also charged with felony discharge of a firearm causing serious body injury, obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering and commission of violent offense in the presence of a child, Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray announced on Tuesday.
Robinson made his first court appearance on Tuesday. His next hearing is scheduled for Sept. 29.
Before he turned himself in to authorities, Robinson’s parents asked him why he committed this crime, to which he allegedly said “there is too much evil and the guy [Charlie Kirk] spreads too much hate,” according to charging documents.
The suspect also allegedly texted his roommate after the shooting that he “had enough of this hatred.”
“Some hate can’t be negotiated out,” one of the messages read, according to the charging documents.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI is investigating “anyone and everyone” involved in a chat on Discord — a group chat messaging platform — where the suspect allegedly sent messages two hours before he was taken into custody, admitting he shot Kirk.
“Hey guys, I have bad news for you all…It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this,” one of the messages allegedly read.
Patel said there are “a lot more” than 20 people linked to Robinson on Discord and that the FBI is “running them all down. He added that a “number of individuals” are currently being investigated.
Kirk’s memorial service will take place on Sunday in Glendale, Arizona. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and members of the Kirk family are expected to attend.
Erika Kirk, the activist’s widow, is expected to speak on Sunday. On Thursday, she was “unanimously elected” as the new CEO and chair of the board for Turning Point USA, the organization her late husband founded.
The Department of Homeland Security has designated Charlie Kirk’s memorial service as a Special Event Assessment Rating Level 1 event, which is “reserved for events of the highest national significance,” a department official said.
ABC News’ John Parkinson contributed to this report.
