KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Lake Ethan Roberts, 26, entered a plea of guilty to an indictment that charged him with one count of possession of unregistered destructive devices in violation of U.S. law, according to the United State's Attorney.
On May 28, 2026, an initial complaint was filed against Roberts, alleging that he was a member of a group that called themselves the “Red Legs.”
The Red Legs group has been active since at least November 2023. Red Legs members frequently communicated with each other using a Signal private chat group. Signal is a private messaging application that emphasizes privacy and security through end-to-end encryption.
In their private Signal chat group, Red Legs members have engaged in discussions regarding the plans to engage in acts of violence directed towards government entities and property, particularly the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (“ICE”), the National Guard, and other opposing political groups.
Some of Roberts’s communications to the group included the following messages: “We need to plan decisive action against ice and dhs;” “What are the chances we could get away with using drones to drop incendiary’s [sic] to demolish key infrastructure;” “I like the idea of using drones carrying cocktails to demolish key structures…Frozen water areas [this is an apparent reference to ICE structures];” “After we build our ranks and adequately arm ourselves, we can look into escalation;” “If ice moves to kc, thoughts on an armed response.” As part of their preparations for armed conflict with the federal government, Red Legs members also periodically trained by shooting firearms at a local firearm range.
According to the complaint, on May 14, 2026, Roberts and another Red Legs member met with an undercover law enforcement officer in Richmond, Mo. Roberts had brought with him two devices that were wrapped in duct tape and had an apparent fuse. Roberts referred to the devices as “alcohol shooters filled with black powder surrounded with steel BBs.” Roberts brought the devices to detonate them to test how they worked. Roberts detonated both devices in a rock quarry area. The FBI Laboratory Explosives Unit provided an opinion that the two devices constituted improvised explosive devices (“IEDs”).
According to an explosive expert’s opinion, IEDs, also called homemade bombs, generally consist of an explosive main charge, method of initiation, and sometimes a container and/or enhancements. These devices were described as small liquor bottles containing the low explosive black powder with a cannon fuse being utilized as the method of initiation. Properly assembled, the described IEDs would be capable of causing property damage, injury, and/or death. Investigators conducted an inquiry of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives National Firearms Act Branch and determined that Roberts had not registered any destructive devices as required by the National Firearms Act of 1934.
Under federal statutes, Roberts is subject to a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole for his charge of unlawful possession of an unregistered destructive device.
The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.