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An undocumented man who was accused by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary, Kristi Noem, last week of threatening to assassinate Donald Trump in a letter may have been framed by someone accused of previously attacking the man, according to news reports.
Investigators are said to be looking into whether the letter was an attempt to get the man deported, to prevent him from testifying against his alleged attacker.
The extremely public accusation against the 54-year-old father of three, Ramon Morales-Reyes, led to his arrest and detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) officials.
News reports from CNN, ABC and the Associated Press detail Morales-Reyes’ case and how Noem’s highly publicized accusation against him appears to have unraveled. Prior to Noem accusing Morales-Reyes of threatening to kill the president, local investigators in Milwaukee were already reportedly investigating whether the letter was a setup.
Morales-Reyes was allegedly assaulted by a man in September 2023, who slashed him with a box cutter before stealing his bike. As the case prepared to go to trial, Ice this month received the letter threatening to assassinate Trump.
“I will self deport myself back to Mexico but not before I use my 30 yard 6 to shoot your precious president,” the handwritten letter says, which was completely written in English and signed with Morales-Reyes’ name.
Morales-Reyes was arrested and detained. But local investigators compared Morales-Reyes’ handwriting with the letter and found they did not match.
Meanwhile, activists and attorneys began working on his case. Local Wisconsin immigration advocates and attorneys, with Morales-Reyes’ family, said during a press release on Friday that Morales-Reyes did not write the letter.
“A family member called our organizers, letting us know that this was impossible, as her father had very little formal education and could not read or write in Spanish – let alone perfect English,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, the executive director of Voces de la Frontera, an immigrant advocacy organization.
Citing police documents it had obtained, CNN reported that Milwaukee officials on Monday began reviewing jailhouse calls from the individual accused of having assaulted Morales-Reyes and discovered he discussed sending letters to Ice in order to frame his alleged victim. He reportedly wanted to have Morales-Reyes deported to prevent him from testifying in the robbery trial.
“He outta there,” the person said in a phone call earlier in May, according to the CNN report, and described how Trump’s return to office was increasing deportations.
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On Wednesday, Noem began sharing the accusation against Morales-Reyes, along with his photo and an image of the letter, which were posted in a press release on the DHS website. The accusation quickly spread on social media and rightwing, Trump-allied sites.
“Thanks to our Ice officers, this illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump is behind bars,” Noem said. “I will continue to take all measures necessary to ensure the protection of President Trump.”
Local officials and the DHS told the Associated Press that the case is still under investigation.
After the 2023 assault, Morales-Reyes applied for a U-visa – a special visa provided to undocumented victims of crime that may lead to a pathway to legal residency. The process to obtain a U-visa is lengthy and complicated.
It is unclear whether Noem will issue a correction on the matter, if Morales-Reyes will be able to testify against the alleged perpetrator or how his U-visa application process may be affected by him being placed in Ice detention.
