Pennsylvania Man Charged With Threats to Assault, Murder Trump

A man from Butler, Pennsylvania has been arrested for allegedly threatening to assassinate President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials.

Flags fly over an entrance to FBI headquarters in Washington on Feb. 3, 2025. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

A Pennsylvania man has been arrested and charged with threatening to assault and assassinate President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials, federal prosecutors announced on April 11.

Shawn Monper, of Butler, Pennsylvania, was taken into custody on April 9 following an FBI investigation into a series of online threats he allegedly made under the alias “Mr Satan.” The threats—posted on YouTube between mid-January and early April—targeted Trump, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, and multiple federal officials, according to the criminal complaint.

According to prosecutors, Monper’s posts contained multiple explicit threats, including a February comment stating, “We just need to start killing people, Trump, Elon, all the heads of agencies Trump appointed, and anyone who stands in the way.” The post included a call to launch “American Revolution 2.0.”

Another post in early March allegedly declared: “I’m going to assassinate him myself,” referring to Trump. Days later, Monper reportedly escalated his rhetoric, writing: “I have been buying 1 gun a month since the election, body armor, and ammo.”

Federal investigators tied the “Mr Satan” account to Monper’s residence and discovered he had obtained a firearms permit shortly after Trump took office in January. He is accused of making additional threats toward federal agents, including ICE personnel, writing in April: “If I see an armed ICE agent, I will consider it a domestic terrorist ... and open fire.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi praised the FBI and local authorities for acting swiftly, saying in a statement that they “thankfully identified and apprehended this individual before he could carry out his threats against President Trump’s life and the lives of other innocent Americans.”

“Rest assured that whenever and wherever threats of assassination or mass violence occur, this Department of Justice will find, arrest, and prosecute the suspect to the fullest extent of the law and seek the maximum appropriate punishment,” Bondi added.

Currently, Monper is being held without bail pending a detention hearing set for April 14. If convicted, he could face significant federal prison time. His attorneys were not reachable for comment.

The arrest comes as Trump’s security profile remains elevated following a July 2024 assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Monper’s hometown. Trump survived the attack with a wound to his ear.

A painting depicting a bloodied and defiant Trump surrounded by Secret Service agents at the Butler rally was hung in a prominent location at the White House on Friday, replacing a portrait of former President Barack Obama.

Monper’s arrest also follows new developments in another high-profile case involving an attempt to assassinate Trump. In Florida, Ryan Routh is facing both federal and state charges on allegations of attempting to shoot Trump as he golfed last fall. Florida’s attorney general announced on April 10 that Routh—already jailed on federal charges in connection with the assassination attempt—was additionally charged at the state level with terrorism and attempted murder.

“Attempting to take the life of a former president and a leading presidential candidate isn’t just an attack on one man, this was a political attack against our Republican form of government and our shared American values,” Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a video statement shared on social media.

Routh, who is due in court on the federal charges in September, has pleaded not guilty.