Federal authorities arrested Jaden J. Read, 24, of Clearwater, Kansas, on Saturday, Oct. 17. The U.S. Department of Justice said it filed a criminal complaint that day alleging he threatened President Donald Trump before a planned Wichita-area rally.
The DOJ identified him as Jaden J. Read, 24, of Clearwater, Kansas. Authorities arrested him there on Saturday, Oct. 17, the day the complaint was filed. The department described the alleged offense as threats against the president.
The DOJ said authorities learned of Read’s Facebook comments from a Crime Stoppers tip dated Thursday, Oct. 15. The comments concerned Trump’s scheduled visit and appeared below articles from KAKE News and KWCH 12 News, with two under each. The department said the posts included calls for Trump to be shot, a claim that Read had obtained ammunition and an assertion that he had mapped rooftops near the planned speech site. One comment also said Read would shoot the president himself, according to the DOJ.
ABC News said court papers left two points unanswered: whether officers found guns when they arrested Read and whether he acted on the rooftop plan described in his posts.
The DOJ said Trump’s visit was scheduled for Monday, Oct. 19, in the Wichita area. The Associated Press and ABC News reported that he held the rally that day in Park City, outside Wichita, in support of Republican Sen. Roger Marshall.
U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser said his office regarded threats of political violence as unacceptable. He added that constitutional protections for political disagreement have limits.
Read remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing, the DOJ said. Its release did not specify a date for the hearing. The department said the complaint contains allegations only and that Read retains the presumption of innocence unless prosecutors prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
