Trent Schneider, a 58-year-old resident of Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, was found guilty by a federal jury of making true threats against President Donald Trump. The conviction followed a three-day trial in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Schneider had posted numerous social media videos and messages vowing to kill the president.
Schneider posted at least 18 threats on Instagram under the username truthreaper888, including videos tagged with the location of Trump Tower in Chicago and the president's accounts. In one October 16 video, he declared directly to the camera, “@realDonaldTrump SHOULD BE EXECUTED!!!” He added, “I'm tired of all you f—ing frauds. People need to f—ing die and people are going to die. F— all of you, especially you Trump.” Another clip featured him stating, “I can get a lot of f—ing guns and I am going to take care of business.” Despite captions claiming “THIS IS NOT A THREAT!!!,” prosecutors argued these were true threats in interstate commerce, according to a Justice Department press release announcing the verdict last week after the trial in Chicago's federal court. He reposted some videos multiple times that day, drawing attention from a concerned citizen in Florida who alerted authorities. Law enforcement interviewed Schneider on October 22 at his home, where he became irate and yelled at investigators. Shortly after, he uploaded a video of the officers leaving his driveway with the same threatening caption. Authorities arrested him there in Winthrop Harbor. During court appearances, Schneider told a judge he would “burn this castle down,” insisting it was not a threat, and later quipped about staying in the “Trump motel” with popcorn, as reported by local outlet WBBM. U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros emphasized, “Let this conviction send a clear message that it is never acceptable to threaten a political figure or a member of the judiciary.” Schneider has a prior criminal history, including 2022 threats to “shoot up” a T-Mobile store, for which he was deemed unfit to stand trial. He often wore a Punisher-style skull hat in his videos and past encounters with police.
