FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed Sunday that the Secret Service discovered a hunting stand with a view of President Donald Trump as he disembarks Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in Florida.
“USSS spotted a suspicious stand near the AF1 zone in Palm Beach,” Patel wrote in a post on X, which included a screenshot of a Fox News article. “The FBI is investigating.”
In a statement to Fox News, Patel explained that the Secret Service “discovered what appeared to be an elevated hunting stand” that had a view of the President exiting Air Force One. Patel added that “no individuals were located at the scene.”
“Prior to the President’s return to West Palm Beach, USSS discovered what appeared to be an elevated hunting stand within sight line of the Air Force One landing zone,” Patel said in his statement, adding that the Federal Bureau of Investigation “has since taken the investigatory lead” regarding the hunting stand.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi explained to the outlet that the Secret Service’s discovery of the hunting stand came as they were conducting “advance security preparations” ahead of Trump coming to Palm Beach.
“While we are not able to provide details about the specific items or their intent, this incident underscores the importance of our layered security measures,” Guglielmi told the outlet.
The Secret Service’s discovery of the hunting stand with a view of Trump comes as the President has previously faced two assassination attempts.
During Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire from the rooftop of a nearby building with a direct line of sight. Trump later revealed that he had been “shot with a bullet that pierced” his upper right ear.
Months later, on September 15, 2024, Ryan Wesley Routh — who was found guilty last month of attempting to assassinate Trump — was apprehended after a Secret Service agent saw the barrel of Routh’s AK-style rifle “sticking out of the bushes” where he had been hiding near Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach.
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