Conflicting reports sparked chaos ahead of a New York rally for former President Donald Trump.
The Wednesday night rally, taking place in Nassau Coliseum, is expected to draw thousands (as many of Trump’s rallies do) of eager supporters to Long Island.
In the lead-up to the event, however, one independent journalist cast an ominous shadow over the entire event.
Sources in the Nassau County Police Department just told me that “the perimeter was breached and a blue barrel was removed” from the area surrounding tonight’s Trump rally site.
Source said “During K9, doing their checks, they found an explosive device in one of the vehicles and…
— James Lalino (@JamesLalino) September 18, 2024
“Sources in the Nassau County Police Department just told me that ‘the perimeter was breached and a blue barrel was removed’ from the area surrounding tonight’s Trump rally site,” journalist James Lalino posted to X.
“Source said ‘During K9, doing their checks, they found an explosive device in one of the vehicles and that driver ended up running into the woods. No one saw if he had anything on him, they just saw him take off running,’” Lalino continued. “‘A lot of cars are now parking, they’re lining up on Hempstead Turnpike, just parking on the grass. Even over at Eisenhower Park, they’re just parking over there.’”
That X post sparked a frenzy on social media — for obvious reasons.
After all, Trump, the GOP presidential hopeful, has survived two assassination attempts in as many months.
Do you fear for Trump’s safety?
The furious spate of comments under Lalino’s X post ranged from skeptical to livid, and the story spread far enough that it prompted an actual response from Nassau police.
Reports that an explosive device was found at the Nassau Coliseum are FALSE. #NassauCountyPD
— NCPD (@NassauCountyPD) September 18, 2024
“Reports that an explosive device was found at the Nassau Coliseum are FALSE,” the Nassau Country Police Department posted to X.
While the NCPD clearly denied the existence of an explosive threat, the statement the department gave to media outlets still left the door open that something shady was going on.
“We did respond to a suspicious occurrence in the vicinity of the Nassau Coliseum; however, there was no validity of an explosive device being found,” a statement from the NCPD read, per Newsweek.
A Secret Service representative told Newsweek that it had “no reports of any incidents related to the rally.”
A “suspicious occurrence” — especially in the immediate wake of the second Trump assassination attempt on Sunday — is plenty concerning enough, with or without the threat of explosives, and social media responses echoed that sentiment.
Trump was golfing on Sunday when a man with a rifle was spotted hiding in shrubbery, laying in wait. He was eventually chased off and subsequently apprehended by law enforcement.
Sunday’s incident came just a little over two months after a July 13 assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The Butler attempt was far closer to catastrophe, as Trump was hit in the ear by a whizzing bullet. Other rallygoers were struck, with one dying.
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