Arizona man arrested after threatening to kill Trump

An Arizona man who was wanted after threatening to kill former President Donald Trump on social media was arrested Thursday, the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office said.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was in Cochise County on Thursday when he visited the Mexican border as part of his campaign.

The man, Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, had multiple outstanding warrants in Wisconsin, the sheriff’s office said. He was arrested Thursday afternoon, authorities said Friday.

Syvrud was later booked into the Cochise County Jail on a felony warrant from Graham County in Arizona for “failure to register as a sex offender and two counts of menacing in this case,” the sheriff’s office added. He remained in custody pending future court adjudication.

“I’m not really surprised by the threat, and the reason is because I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys,” Trump said Thursday when asked about the threat against him in Arizona.

It was the latest in a series of threats against candidates ahead of the November 5 general election.

Attendees react during Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump’s rally in Glendale, Arizona, U.S., August 23, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/Go Nakamura)

Attempted murder

In early August, a Virginia man was charged with threatening Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival, and a New Hampshire man was arrested in December for threatening to kill Republican presidential candidates.

In July, Trump was shot in the ear in an assassination attempt that left two other people injured and one man dead.

The US Secret Service came under widespread scrutiny following the shooting. This resulted in the resignation of the agency’s director.

Despite this and the new threats, Trump said Thursday that he has “great respect” for the Secret Service and “for the work they do,” although he added that they made mistakes from which they will learn.