A 24-year-old Kansas man is in federal custody after posting Facebook threats to shoot President Trump and claiming he had already scouted rooftops near the president's Wichita rally—invoking the rooftop murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk as his model. The establishment press barely blinked.
Jaden John Read of Clearwater was charged Saturday with making threats against the president, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Kansas. He was arrested the same day, two days before Trump's scheduled Monday visit to the Wichita area. The investigation kicked off Oct. 15 after a Crime Stoppers tip alerted authorities to Read's comments beneath local TV news Facebook posts about Trump's trip.
The threats were specific and chilling. Under a KAKE News post, Read allegedly wrote: "Let's shoot Trump honestly, where's our shooter? I'm tired of living this money life." He followed with: "I just got a 308 and 305 round and I'm killing this pedo." Under a separate KWCH 12 News article, Read posted: "Can we shoot him in Kansas please I will myself." A minute later: "IK where your speech will be. Already mapped out roofs around. Finna get kirked since yall couldn't help him."
That last line carries weight. As the Santa Rosa Press Democrat noted, the "get kirked" comment references the 2025 murder of Charlie Kirk, killed by a rooftop sniper while speaking at an outdoor event at Utah Valley University. Read wasn't just venting—he was citing a playbook.
The Washington Examiner provided the procedural detail: Wichita Police Deputy Chief Dan East contacted the Secret Service on Oct. 15 and provided screenshots. Secret Service investigators then located the additional rooftop comment. The affidavit was signed by a Secret Service officer.
U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser struck the appropriate notes: "Political violence and threats of political violence will not be tolerated. The First Amendment allows for robust disagreement but there are constraints."
If convicted, Read faces up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. No attorney or hearing date was listed as of Monday.
Fox News covered the arrest and linked it to a pattern—citing similar cases in Butler, Florida, and on college campuses. The Washington Examiner buried the Kirk reference in a single clause and padded its report with unrelated Senate race polling. The Press Democrat, a California outlet running a Wichita Eagle wire story, provided the clearest account of the Kirk invocation and its significance.
But the broader silence is the story. This is the second known assassination-adjacent plot against Trump in recent months. A man with ammunition, a rooftop plan, and a named precedent for political murder gets charged on a Saturday—and the national press treats it like a brief. If the target were a regime-favored figure, the coverage would be inescapable. The quiet tells you who counts and who doesn't.
The open question: how many more like Read are out there, mapping roofs and waiting, before someone in power takes the pattern seriously?
