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Three college students face federal charges over alleged threats against Trump ahead of campus rally

04 Oct 2026 By foxnews

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Three University of South Alabama students were arrested Friday over alleged threats against President Donald Trump ahead of his evening rally on the Mobile campus, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News.

The students, Amare Jemal Woods, Cameron Lamark Lewis and Kayla Leaann Smith, are each accused of violating a federal law prohibiting threats against the president, according to FBI affidavits obtained by Fox News Digital.

The defendants are temporarily detained, and detention and preliminary hearings are scheduled for Monday at 2 p.m.

The federal cases were unsealed following the defendants' arrests and court appearances. An order in Lewis' case directed the clerk to unseal his criminal complaint upon his arrest.

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Federal investigators discovered the alleged threats while conducting social media intelligence searches ahead of Trump's Oct. 2 visit to Mobile, according to the affidavits.

In Woods' alleged post, the FBI said investigators discovered a threatening TikTok comment with a crying emoji Sept. 27 beneath a post about Trump's planned visit to the University of South Alabama.

Investigators submitted an emergency disclosure request to TikTok and subsequently traced information associated with the account through Snapchat and University of South Alabama police, according to the affidavit.

The FBI said investigators connected the TikTok profile to another social media account associated with Smith and matched a phone number attached to the TikTok account with one belonging to her.

Lewis, according to the FBI affidavit, allegedly posted on X that people would "remember the University of South Alabama the same way they remember Utah Valley University."

Investigators noted that Utah Valley University was where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot last year.

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Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said earlier in the week that his office was assisting federal authorities as they monitored social media activity related to the president's upcoming appearance.

The University of South Alabama said ahead of the event that the rally was not university-sponsored and that the Mitchell Center had been rented by the Republican National Committee (RNC).

"The University of South Alabama unequivocally condemns any form of threats directed at elected officials or any individual with whom we disagree," the university said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "We encourage open dialogue and active civic participation, and having a difference of opinion is a natural part of any vibrant community.

"However, there is a clear line between exercising free expression and engaging in intimidation or unlawful conduct."

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Trump took the stage for the midterm campaign rally Friday evening as scheduled, returning to Mobile roughly 11 years after his 2015 rally in the city during the opening months of his first presidential campaign.

"It sort of all began here," Trump told the crowd Friday, recalling the 2015 event.

He also recognized Burch and University of South Alabama President Jo Bonner from the stage.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Justice, FBI, Secret Service and the University of South Alabama for additional information.

Fox News Digital was not immediately able to identify attorneys representing Woods, Lewis or Smith.