A 40-year-old Texas man is in federal custody after authorities say he plotted a violent attack on the state Capitol, and law enforcement moved within hours of the tip.
Texas Department of Public Safety SWAT officers arrested Benny Caldera Jr. at his home in Converse around 3 a.m. Wednesday and booked him into Bexar County Jail on a felony charge of making a terroristic threat against a public servant.
Fox News reported that DPS had received credible information Tuesday about a planned violent attack on the Texas State Capitol set for Thursday, then moved with the FBI and local law enforcement to lock down the main suspect before that date arrived.
Caldera was first released on a $75,000 bond. Later the same day, the FBI took him back into custody at the jail on additional federal charges whose details have not been released.
The Capitol stayed open for regular hours. DPS raised its presence there to protect employees, state officials, and visitors, and notified Texas legislators about the threat and the arrest.
DPS special agents worked the tip alongside the FBI and local partners. By early Wednesday morning, SWAT was at Caldera’s door in the San Antonio-area city of Converse.
The New York Post reported the same sequence: a Tuesday evening tip about a planned violent attack in Austin on Thursday, followed by the early-morning arrest and the $75,000 bond as the investigation continued with FBI help and tighter Capitol security.
DPS described Caldera as the main suspect. Officials have not publicly named any other suspects and have not released the full nature of the credible information or the precise outline of the alleged plot.
One supporting account filled in a sharper alleged statement. Breitbart reported that Caldera allegedly told a friend, “I am going to the Capitol and I am going to shoot it up,” language attributed through court documents.
DPS also said there was no reason at that time to believe an ongoing threat remained at the Capitol, while keeping an increased posture and urging Texans to stay vigilant.
DPS spokesperson Kevin Cooper told Fox News Digital what happened after the bond release:
"Late this evening, Benny Caldera Jr., 40, was arrested by the FBI at the Bexar Co. Jail to face additional federal charges in connection with a possible planned attack at the Texas State Capitol. Caldera Jr. was then released from the Bexar Co. Jail into federal custody, where he will remain. For questions about the federal case, we would direct you to the FBI,"
FBI Director Kash Patel praised the speed of the response on X:
"Outstanding work by @TxDPS. Proud of our @FBISanAntonio team for standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our state and local partners. Within HOURS of the tip, @TxDPS had the main suspect in custody, with @FBISanAntonio and local law enforcement assisting. Threaten Americans or our institutions and law enforcement will move FAST,"
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott struck the same note:
"Texas DPS and the FBI stopped a planned attack on the Texas Capitol. Texas will NOT tolerate threats of violence against our Capitol. Thank you, @TxDPS, for a job well done,"
The case remains under investigation. No injuries or damage were reported. Officials have not stated a motive.
In short order, a Tuesday tip became a Wednesday pre-dawn arrest, a state felony charge, a brief bond release, and a same-day transfer into federal custody. The alleged target date was Thursday. The building stayed open under heavier DPS protection.
Public servants who work under the Capitol dome, and the taxpayers who fund it, got a clear demonstration of what rapid state-federal coordination looks like when a threat is treated as real.
Threats against the people’s institutions are not free speech theater. They are crimes, and Texas just showed it will answer them with handcuffs, not press releases.
