'Let's Shoot Trump Honestly': Secret Service Arrests Kansas Man Over Alleged Assassination Plot

A 24-year-old Kansas man has been charged with threatening to kill Donald Trump after allegedly posting on Facebook: 'Let's shoot Trump honestly, where's our shooter? I'm tired of living this money life.'

Federal prosecutors say Jaden J. Read, of Clearwater, made a series of online comments about shooting the former president and mapping rooftops near Trump's 19 October campaign rally at the Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, Kansas.

Read was arrested on 17 October after investigators reviewed comments reported to authorities through Crime Stoppers. A criminal complaint accusing him of threatening the president was filed the same day.

The allegations centre on comments posted beneath local news reports about Trump's planned appearance near Wichita. Authorities have not publicly established that Read possessed a weapon or took concrete steps to carry out an attack.

According to a Justice Department statement issued on 19 October, a Crime Stoppers tip on 15 October alerted investigators to comments attributed to Read beneath a KAKE News Facebook story about Trump's visit.

Investigators then identified further online comments referring to Trump's planned speech and nearby rooftops. However, the public account does not state that Read had obtained a firearm or prepared an assassination attempt.

Facebook Threats Trigger Federal Charge

In one comment cited by federal prosecutors, Read allegedly wrote, 'Let's shoot Trump honestly, where's our shooter? I'm tired of living this money life.'

In a second comment beneath the same KAKE News story, Read allegedly claimed to have obtained ammunition and made another threatening statement. However, the Justice Department's public account did not establish whether he possessed a firearm or had acquired the ammunition mentioned in the post.

The distinction is significant because the investigation concerns alleged threats communicated online, rather than a confirmed assassination plot. Read has been charged with threatening the president, but prosecutors have not publicly established that he took concrete steps towards carrying out an attack.

Under federal law, knowingly and wilfully making threats against the president can constitute a criminal offence. However, the allegations remain unproven, and Read is presumed innocent unless found guilty in court.

Investigators also identified two additional comments attributed to Read beneath a separate KWCH 12 News Facebook report about Trump's upcoming visit to Kansas. One allegedly expressed his willingness to shoot the president himself, while another referred to the location of Trump's speech.

Alleged Rooftop Claim Scrutinised by Investigators

According to the Justice Department, Read allegedly posted another threatening message approximately one minute after the preceding comment. The statement suggested that he knew where Trump would speak and claimed to have mapped nearby rooftops.

'IK where your speech will be. Already mapped out roofs around. Finna get kirked since yall couldn't help him,' the message read.

Although the wording referred to rooftops near the planned event, prosecutors did not present publicly verified evidence that Read had surveyed buildings or undertaken preparations for an attack. The available information establishes the allegation concerning the Facebook comment, not whether the activities described in it occurred.

The rooftop reference also bore a resemblance to the circumstances surrounding the assassination attempt against Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on 13 July 2024. However, authorities have not publicly identified any connection between that incident and the allegations against Read.

During the Pennsylvania attack, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle while positioned on a nearby building. Trump suffered an injury to his right ear, while rally attendee Corey Comperatore was killed.

Two other attendees, James Copenhaver and David Dutch, were wounded in the shooting. Copenhaver subsequently died in September 2026, more than two years after the attack, although his family's public statement did not establish whether his death resulted directly from those injuries.

Trump Rally Goes Ahead After Arrest

Trump attended a campaign rally at the Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City on 19 October, two days after Read's arrest. He appeared in support of Republican Senator Roger Marshall ahead of the 3 November midterm elections.

Read was arrested in Clearwater on 17 October and taken into federal custody. The Justice Department said on 19 October that he was awaiting a detention hearing.

US Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser warned that political disagreements did not justify unlawful threats. The investigation involved the US Secret Service, US Marshals Service and several Kansas law enforcement agencies.

If convicted of threatening the president, Read could face up to five years in prison, a fine or both. The Justice Department's statement did not provide a detention-hearing outcome or establish whether the alleged threats involved preparations beyond Facebook comments.

The allegations remain unproven, and Read is presumed innocent unless convicted.