US President Donald Trump's arrival at Palm Beach International Airport on Friday, Oct. 17, was accompanied by heightened security measures after a suspicious hunting stand was discovered nearby a day earlier, with a direct line of sight to his Air Force One boarding area.
The potential sniper position, first reported by Fox News, prompted Trump to use a shorter staircase for a quicker boarding process. No arrests have been made in connection with the incident.
A White House official stated that Trump implemented "enhanced security protocols" in response to the threat, opting for a smaller ramp to expedite his entry onto Air Force One. FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed that the bureau is leading the investigation and has dedicated resources to collect all available evidence from the scene.
Before the President's return to West Palm Beach, the Secret Service identified a hunting stand within visual range of Air Force One's landing zone. No individuals were found at the location, Patel said.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi verified that agents discovered the suspicious structure during advance security preparations before Trump arrived in Palm Beach. He emphasized that the incident did not impact any operations and that no suspects have been identified.
A law enforcement official indicated that the hunting stand appeared to have been installed months earlier in an area where private aircraft, including Trump's personal plane, are frequently parked. While Air Force One doesn't typically use that section of the airport, ongoing construction projects necessitated its temporary use for this visit.
The security scare follows two previous assassination attempts against Trump last year - a shooting at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in July, and a narrowly-averted sniper incident while he was playing golf in Florida last September.
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