A Winthrop Harbor man is dealing with a federal cost for allegedly posting a video threatening to kill President Donald Trump and repeatedly declaring on-line that Trump “needs to be executed.”
Federal prosecutors say 57-year-old Trent Schneider posted an offended, profanity-laced Instagram video of himself on October 16 through which he mentioned he was “going to get some weapons…I do know the place I can get plenty of f****** weapons and I’m going to handle enterprise myself. … Folks have to f****** die … F*** all of you, particularly you, Trump. You have to be executed.”
The submit’s caption said: “THIS IS NOT A THREAT!!! AFTER LOSING EVERYTHING and My Home Public sale date is 11.04.2025 @realDonaldTrump SHOULD BE EXECUTED!!!”
CWBChicago obtained a duplicate of the video in query. Have a look, however be warned it incorporates sturdy language.
In line with a felony grievance unsealed on Monday, a involved citizen in Florida noticed the video and reported it to authorities. Inside days, the U.S. Secret Service tracked the submit to Schneider’s dwelling close to the Wisconsin border.
When brokers and native police arrived at Schneider’s home to debate the video on October 22, they famous cameras mounted on tripods within the driveway. When an agent requested Schneider if he had made any threats on-line, Schneider allegedly replied, “Are you silly? Get the f*** off my property! Get the f*** off my property you silly motherf*****! Get off my property!”
About an hour after they left, the identical Instagram account posted a clip of the change and exhibiting the brokers strolling away from the Schneider’s dwelling.
Brokers linked Schneider to the account by way of subscriber data and facial comparisons along with his Illinois driver’s license picture. Prosecutors say Schneider didn’t simply submit the video as soon as, he shared variations of it and accompanying graphics within the days that adopted, some geo-tagged with Trump Tower’s location in Chicago.
The 21-page affidavit paints a portrait of a person spiraling over private and monetary collapse. Investigators discovered Schneider’s dwelling was in foreclosures and scheduled for public sale on Tuesday, a date he talked about repeatedly in his on-line tirades.
Additionally they detailed his previous run-ins with police: violent social-media rants about public officers in 2022, a December 2022 arrest after allegedly threatening to “shoot up” a T-Cell retailer, and a March 2023 discovering that he was mentally unfit to face trial in that case.
Brokers sought warrants to grab his electronics, entry his Meta accounts, and unlock gadgets utilizing biometric strategies. They mentioned the fabric probably incorporates proof of threats, planning, and communications about acquiring weapons.
Schneider was arrested Friday morning and appeared hours later earlier than U.S. Justice of the Peace Decide Jeffrey Gilbert, who ordered him detained pending a Nov. 6 listening to. He’s charged with making a risk to injure one other individual in interstate commerce, a felony punishable by as much as 5 years in federal jail.
Apart from the alleged threats and visits from legislation enforcement, most of Schneider’s Instagram content material featured movies of deer roaming his property.
Authentic reporting you’ll see nowhere else, paid for by our readers. Click on right here to help our work.
