Arizona authorities have launched an urgent manhunt for a suspect accused of threatening to shoot former President Donald Trump during a visit to the border on Thursday. Ronald Lee Syrvud, 66, is wanted in connection with an alleged assassination plot targeting Trump's visit to a vulnerable section of the southern border in Cochise County, AZ.
This incident comes just six weeks after an assassination attempt on Trump's life, during which a bullet grazed the former president's ear at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks shot Trump at a Pennsylvania rally in what has been called a major security service failure, although the bullet narrowly missed Trump.
Manhunt for Likely Trump Assassin
Police said that Syrvud has multiple pending warrants for his arrest on various charges, including a DUI and failure to appear in court in Wisconsin, as well as failure to register as a sex offender and a felony hit-and-run in Arizona.
The alleged plot to assassinate Trump was reportedly aimed at his visit to the border in Sierra Vista, a location his campaign has previously visited.
Trump's running mate, JD Vance, had toured Sierra Vista three weeks ago, where he highlighted security issues in the mountainous area, calling it a "smuggler's paradise."
Arizona officials believe Syrvud is currently in the border region and are making an urgent effort to find him before Trump's visit.
Syrvud is described as being six feet tall, weighing 220 pounds, and wearing glasses. His last known residence is in Benson, Arizona.
Before his visit, Trump posted on Truth Social on Wednesday, saying he would address "the plague of migrant crime that so-called Border Czar, comrade Kamala Harris has unleashed on America."
Risk Over Trump's Life Increases Again
Trump campaign has not yet commented on the threat, and it is not yet clear whether the campaign will cancel or reschedule the border visit.
Vance slammed Vice President Kamala Harris during his tour of Sierra Vista three weeks ago, calling her a "failed Border Czar" and blaming the migrant crisis to her policies.
The Ohio senator also pointed out security issues in the "smuggler's paradise," the same region where the alleged assassination plot against Trump was reportedly planned.
The area presents several security challenges due to its mountainous and rugged terrain, which provides smugglers and cartel traffickers with vantage points to evade detection.
"It's unbelievable what we're letting happen at the southern border, and it's because Kamala Harris refuses to do her job," Vance said at the time.
