Secret Service Arrests Armed Man Near White House After Alleged Threat Against Trump, DHS Says
Secret Service officers arrested Ronny Yordrix Guanipa Chrinos near the White House on Thursday after finding three guns and ammunition in a stolen car, the Department of Homeland Security said. DHS said the Venezuelan national told officers that voices in his head had told him to come to Washington and kill President Donald Trump.
The U.S. Secret Service arrested a man near the White House on Thursday after officers found three guns and dozens of rounds of ammunition in a stolen car, the Department of Homeland Security said. DHS said the man told officers that voices in his head had told him to come to Washington and kill President Donald Trump.
Secret Service officers on patrol spotted Ronny Yordrix Guanipa Chrinos acting suspiciously in a car parked on Constitution Avenue, which runs along the National Mall beside the White House, according to DHS. When officers approached him, DHS said, he told them he had heard voices telling him to travel to Washington and kill the president. Officers then learned the car had been reported stolen, and the suspect said he had weapons inside it.
Officers found three firearms in the car, an AR-15-style rifle, a Mac 10 handgun and a Glock pistol, along with dozens of rounds of ammunition, DHS said. Chrinos was arrested on firearms charges that include carrying a rifle outside a home or business, unlawful transportation of a firearm, and possession of unregistered firearms and ammunition, as well as theft, receiving stolen property and unauthorized use of a vehicle. He is in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged a detainer for him.
Entered the U.S. in 2024, DHS says
DHS said Chrinos, a Venezuelan national, entered the United States illegally through Texas in March 2024. He was arrested at the time by the U.S. Border Patrol and then released into the country, according to DHS.
“Thanks to our brave Secret Service officers, this illegal alien with three firearms in his vehicle was arrested near the White House before he could harm anyone,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement.
Secret Service Director Sean Curran said officers used their training “to deescalate a volatile situation that posed an imminent threat to our protectees and other Americans.” He said the case “reflects the heightened threat environment in which we operate, as well as the continued number of armed individuals who are drawn to the White House complex.”
More threat cases reaching the White House
The Secret Service said the White House has seen a rise in cases involving mental health issues, and that the White House and the presidency can become a focus for people with such issues.
In May, Secret Service officers shot and killed a man with a history of mental health issues after he opened fire near a security checkpoint at the White House, CNN reported.
Curran said the agency would keep expanding its work to find and investigate people who make threats against its protectees, “in order to disrupt threats before they arrive in Washington.”
Reporting based on coverage by CNN and the New York Post.
