Barney Davis
Published November 23, 2025 10:33pm
Updated November 23, 2025 10:33pm
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Gavin Rivers Weisenburg (L) and Tanner Christopher Thomas (R) are behind bars awaiting trial after ‘their plot was uncovered’ (Picture: AP)
Two American men plotted to invade a Caribbean island to take sex slaves and live out their violent ‘rape fantasies’, according to prosecutors.
Gavin Rivers Weisenburg, 21, and Tanner Christopher Thomas, 20, both from Texas are accused of planning to recruit an army of homeless people to storm Gonave Island off Haiti.
Their plot would see them ‘murder all of the men on the island so that they could then turn all of the women and children into their sex slaves’, an indictment read.
According to the document, Weisenburg and Thomas planned to buy a sailboat, guns and then recruit members of the District of Columbia-area homeless population to serve as a mercenary force.
They would then launch an invasion of Gonave Island and stage a coup d’etat.
The 743 km² island has a population of around 100,000 people. It is only accessible by boat with locals living under famine and extreme poverty.
Thomas enlisted in the US Air Force in January, according to the indictment, and told Weisenburg in a social media message that he had joined the military to help plan their invasion.
Weisenburg allegedly enrolled in a fire academy around Dallas to receive training that would be useful for the invasion but he flunked out of school.
He then allegedly travelled to Thailand to learn how to sail, but he found the lessons ‘too expensive’ then ended up not enrolling.
Gonave Island is only accessible by boat (Picture: NASA)
Attorneys for both men said they will enter not guilty pleas.
‘They never tried to do any of this,’ said John Helms, who is Thomas’ attorney.
David Finn, Weisenburg’s attorney, said he encourages everyone to ‘tap the brakes’ before the trial.
He said people have been telling him it is ‘the craziest thing’ they have heard, and his response has been: ‘Yeah, it is.’
Both were also charged with persuading a minor to make child pornography, which was found on their devices.
If convicted of the federal conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country, Weisenburg and Thomas face up to life in federal prison.
If convicted of the federal production of child pornography charges, both face at least 15 years and up to 30 years in federal prison.
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