A Milwaukee man awaiting trial on criminal robbery charges had an interesting defense strategy: framing one of his victims for threatening to murder President Trump.
On Monday, Demetric D. Scott, 42, who was already in jail on charges of armed robbery and aggravated battery, was charged with witness intimidation, identity theft, and bail jumping after police discovered he’d forged several letters threatening the president’s life under the name of Ramón Morales-Reyes.
Scott admitted to police that he’d forged the letters not because he had any interest in harming the president, but because he’d hoped they would lead to the deportation of Morales-Reyes, who was set to testify at his upcoming robbery trial.
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Scott was arrested in 2023 after being captured on a Ring camera stabbing Morales-Reyes with a corkscrew while attempting to steal his bike, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported.
The phony letters already made national headlines when DHS Secretary Kristi Noem publicly celebrated the arrest of Morales-Reyes, despite police quickly expressing suspicion that the letters had been forged.
According to Milwaukee police, on May 21, the offices of the Wisconsin Attorney General, Milwaukee Police Chief, and Milwaukee ICE headquarters each received handwritten letters signed in Morales-Reyes’ name and with his home listed as the return address, containing threats against the president’s life.
The letters read in part, “I will self deport myself back to Mexico, but not before I use my 30 yard 6 [rifle] to shoot your precious president in his head—I will see him at one of his big ralleys.”
The following day, on May 22, police arrested Morales-Reyes, 54. He was quickly transferred into DHS custody due to his undocumented status.
The arrest earned praise from Noem, who wrote, “Thanks to our ICE officers, this illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump is behind bars.”
However, Milwaukee police weren’t certain they had the right man. Not only did a handwriting test quickly reveal that Morales-Reyes’ penmanship didn’t match the letters, but they also discovered he is not fluent in English.
When asked if someone may have a motive to frame him for the crime, Morales-Reyes mentioned his plans to testify against Scott.
Upon further investigation, police discovered that Scott had made explicit plans to forge and mail the letters in recorded jail phone calls dating back nearly a month, NBC News reported.
In one call, made five days before the letters were received, Scott said, “This dude is a goddamn illegal immigrant and they just need to pick his ass up… if he gets picked up by ICE, there won’t be a jury trial, so they will probably dismiss it that day. That’s my plan.”
Since his arrest, Scott has had a pattern of mischievous letter-writing. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, in an August 2024 letter to Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Kristy Yang, the judge presiding over his case, Scott had threatened to turn her courtroom “into a circus,” adding, “This case will never make it to jury trial.”
After Morales-Reyes identified Scott as a suspect in the forgery, police searched his jail cell, finding a pen matching the ink used in the letters, an envelope, and a note Scott had written reminding himself to find out the address of the attorney general’s office. Scott eventually confessed during police questioning on May 30.
However, Morales-Reyes remains in ICE custody at Dodge County Jail in Juneau, Wisconsin, and is now facing removal proceedings.
Responding to initial reports that the letters were forged, a senior official from the Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Beast last week that Morales-Reyes will remain in custody because he was “determined to be in the country illegally and [has] a criminal record.”
According to a DHS press release, Morales-Reyes has previously been arrested for felony hit and run, criminal damage to property, and disorderly conduct with a domestic abuse modifier. The press release also claimed Morales-Reyes entered the U.S. illegally nine times between 1998 and 2005.
Morales-Reyes’ attorney, Kime Abduli, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that because he is still a witness in Scott’s robbery trial, which is set for July 14, Morales-Reyes is in the process of applying for a U-visa, which allows undocumented immigrants to remain in the country if they are testifying in a criminal case.
