Deranged Intruder Attempts Unlawful White House Entry

By Gabrielle Seunagal
Jonathan Tuan-Anh Tran earned the nickname of  ‘White House intruder’ after attempting to illegally enter the White House by jumping a fence near the Treasury Building. Tran was then observed hiding behind a pillar and continued towards the South Portico entrance. When he discovered Secret Service was observing his every move, he foolishly sprinted for the South Lawn in the opposite direction of the White House. This recent news sparked media attention and engendered obvious questions regarding the nature of Tran’s intentions.

Upon Tran’s arrest,  mace, a U.S. passport, a laptop, a book written by President Trump, and a letter were found on his person. The letter was written for the President and consisted of Russian hacking assertions, information regarding phones and emails which were believed to be under surveillance, and claims that Tran was labeled as schizophrenic. The President commended the manner in which Secret Service handled the matter, classifying the intruder as a “very disturbed person.” Whether Tran was a fan of President Trump remains a mystery, but his actions were inexcusable and handled accordingly. It begs to question what thoughts were going through his head. Trans was surely aware of the undesirable consequences that would follow as a result of his actions. Was he really so stupid to believe that he could sneak his way into the White House, the most guarded building in America? Perhaps he did suffer from some mental illness. Nonetheless, the story serves as quite the conundrum.
Tran has been deemed a flight risk and will be kept in custody until Monday when he makes his next court appearance. If Tran is convicted, he will serve up to ten years in prison. While detained by Secret Service, he declared himself as a ‘friend’ of the President and stated that he had an appointment. Most friends do not attempt to sneak into each others homes. Either Tran truly does suffer from a severe mental impairment or he is merely a flagrant dolt who believed he would breaching Secret Service. Hopefully, Tran’s circumstances will serve as a warning to any person who considers the notion of unlawfully entering the White House.