Jaden J. Read

Charged, not convicted. Read, 24, has been charged by federal criminal complaint with making threats against the President. A complaint is merely an allegation, and he is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Introduction

Jaden J. Read, 24, of Clearwater, Kansas, was charged by federal criminal complaint with making Threats Against the President after a series of Facebook comments about shooting President Trump ahead of the President’s October 19, 2026 visit to Wichita . The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Kansas filed the complaint on October 17, 2026, and Read was arrested in Clearwater the same day and taken into federal custody . The charging documents quote his own posts at length — including “Let’s shoot Trump honestly, where’s our shooter?” and a comment claiming he had “Already mapped out roofs around” the speech venue .

Background Information

The path to the complaint began on October 15, 2026, when a Crime Stoppers tip led authorities to a Facebook post in which Read made comments responding to a KAKE News article detailing President Trump’s upcoming Wichita visit . Read’s comments, per the release, raised concern among the authorities: he first posted “Let’s shoot Trump honestly, where’s our shooter? I’m tired of living this money life”, and immediately after posted a second comment on the same article stating “I just got a 308 and 305 round and I’m killing this pedo” . Authorities found two more comments in response to a different article by KWCH 12 News discussing the same visit: “Can we shoot him in Kansas please I will myself.” and, a minute later, “IK where your speech will be. Already mapped out roofs around. Finna get kirked since yall couldn’t help him” .

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

On October 17, 2026 — two days after the tip and the same day the complaint was filed — authorities arrested Read in Clearwater and he was taken into federal custody, where he will remain until his detention hearing . U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser said “Political violence and threats of political violence will not be tolerated.” He added: “The first Amendment allows for robust disagreement but there are constraints. I caution people to stay within the bounds of constitutionally protected speech” . The complaint alleges violations of the federal threats statute, 18 U.S.C. § 871, the charge the release’s own summary cites for Threats Against the President .

Public Reaction and Consequences

The U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Kansas Highway Patrol, and the Wichita Police Department investigated the case — a five-agency list that tracks the protection apparatus around a presidential visit . The charging release states plainly that a complaint is merely an allegation and that Read is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt . The case landed two days before the President’s scheduled October 19 appearance in Wichita, the event the charged comments discussed .

Current Status

Read, 24, is in federal custody awaiting a detention hearing; the complaint charging him with Threats Against the President under 18 U.S.C. § 871 remains an allegation, and no indictment appears in the charging release . The release does not describe retained defense counsel or any statement from Read .

Impact on Their Career/Life

At 24, Read faces a federal prosecution whose evidence is his own comment history — four Facebook posts across two local news articles, quoted in full in the government’s charging papers. The case marks where the First Amendment’s boundary sits in the eyes of federal prosecutors in Kansas: robust disagreement is protected, but comments naming a weapon, a shooter, and mapped-out roofs around a presidential speech venue are charged under § 871. His arrest came two days after a Crime Stoppers tip and two days before the visit his comments discussed, and his name now anchors the district’s announcement that political violence and threats of it will be prosecuted.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Kansas, “Kansas man charged by complaint for making threats against the President,” October 19, 2026 — source