A manhunt was underway in Arizona on Thursday for a convicted sex offender authorities say threatened to shoot former President Donald Trump during his planned trip to the border Thursday, the New York Post reported.
According to the Cochise County Sheriff's Office, the suspect was taken into custody without incident or disruption to Trump's appearance at the border. There were no further details at the time of publication.
Police had been looking for 66-year-old Ronald Lee Syrvud, of Benson, Arizona, in connection with the alleged assassination plot.
Police say Syrvud has several outstanding warrants on unrelated charges, including for DUI and failure to appear in court in Wisconsin. He's also wanted in Arizona for failing to register as a sex offender and for a felony hit and run.
Trump is visiting Sierra Vista in Cochise County, an area that running mate J.D. Vance toured earlier this month. Vance dubbed the region a "smuggler's paradise" due to its mountainous terrain, which provides ample cover for cartels trafficking drugs and humans.
Thursday's alleged assassination plot comes more than a month after Trump was shot during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, narrowly escaping death.
The former president posted about the border trip on Truth Social on Thursday, saying, "Today, I am going to INSPECT THE SOUTHERN BORDER and to meet with the Victims whose Loved Ones were attacked and murdered by Illegal Aliens set free into America by Comrade Kamala Harris, the Radical Left Democrat Presidential Candidate."
If reelected, Trump vows to secure the southern border by reinstating several of his immigration policies and deporting millions of illegal migrants.
Kate McManus ✉
Kate McManus is a New Jersey-based Newsmax writer who's spent more than two decades as a journalist.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.