A federal jury has convicted a Winthrop Harbor man who threatened to “execute” U.S. President Donald Trump, saying “people need to die” and “I’m going to get some guns,” while also threatening to burn down the county courthouse.
Trent Schneider, 58, of Winthrop Harbor, was charged in November in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois with making a threat in interstate commerce to injure a person.
A federal jury on Thursday returned guilty verdicts in the case following a three-day trial in Chicago.
According to a criminal complaint and affidavit, Schneider posted a video of himself on October 16 on Instagram.
Schneider said people like him have “suffered real [expletive] crimes from [expletive] judges, doctors, lawyers, police. They should all be killed.”
He additionally said, “I’m going to get some guns. I know where I can get a lot of [expletive] guns and I am going to take care of business myself. I’m tired of all you [expletive] frauds.”
“People need to [expletive] die and people are going to die. [Expletive] all of you, especially you Trump. You should be executed,” Schneider added.
The video also included a caption that stated, in part: “THIS IS NOT A THREAT!!! AFTER LOSING EVERYTHING and My House Auction date is 11.04.2025 @realDonaldTrump SHOULD BE EXECUTED!!!”
A concerned citizen in Florida viewed the video and reported it to law enforcement, the complaint said.
Schneider was the defendant in a pending foreclosure case at the time and a foreclosure auction was scheduled.
Prosecutors said Schneider appeared at the Lake County Courthouse in Waukegan and told the judge presiding over his foreclosure case that he would burn the courthouse down.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said they were contacted by the United States Secret Service about the investigation.
The federal agency requested the assistance of the sheriff’s office’s SWAT team to conduct a search warrant in the case, according to Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
The agencies conducted the search warrant at a home in the 2800 block of 15th Street in Winthrop Harbor on November 3.
Federal agents additionally secured the arrest warrant for Schneider, who lives in the residence, Covelli said.
The sheriff’s office’s SWAT Team took Schneider into custody without incident while conducting both warrants.
The scene was turned over to the U.S. Secret Service and Schneider was transported to federal court regarding the warrant.
The Winthrop Harbor Police Department also assisted the U.S. Secret Service and the Lake County Tactical Response Team in the warrants.
Prior to the warrants being conducted, law enforcement officers attempted to interview Schneider at his home on October 22 to discuss the threats.
He became irate and started yelling at officers to get off his property. He then posted a video on social media of the officers walking down his driveway with a threatening caption, the complaint said.
“Let this conviction send a clear message that it is never acceptable to threaten a political figure or a member of the judiciary,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros said after the jury trial on Thursday.
“Political violence is not only intolerable, but it is a serious crime. Working closely with our law enforcement partners, the Chicago U.S. Attorney’s Office will find, arrest, and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law those responsible for criminally threatening the safety of our elected officials and judges,” Boutros said.
“Threats of political violence are not a joke,” said Dai Tran, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Secret Service Chicago Field Office.
“They are a federal crime. The U.S. Secret Service vigorously pursues all threats to harm the President of the United States. I am proud of our agents’ work in this case and thank our partners at the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and the Winthrop Harbor Police Department for their assistance in bringing this defendant to justice. I also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Illinois for prosecuting this case to its conclusion,” Tran said.
The conviction is punishable by a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and a sentencing hearing has not been scheduled yet. Schneider has remained held in federal custody since his arrest.
In December 2022, Schneider was arrested after he threatened to shoot up a cell phone store and then led police on a 40-minute pursuit where he nearly struck two police officers in Winthrop Harbor. He was found unfit for trial in that case.
Schneider was also the subject of a federal and local investigation in 2022 after he posted multiple violent messages on social media about public officials.