A Bridgton man is charged with making a threat against President Trump.
Kevin Bell was arrested Saturday after reportedly telling an off-duty Department of Public Safety Senior Investigator in a restaurant he didn’t care for Trump and would shoot him.
The officer was in plain clothes and was seated at the bar when Bell approached and began discussing past law enforcement encounters, including previous threats made on social media.
According to a Complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Portland, Bell referenced former President George W. Bush before making the threat against Trump.
“I wanted to shoot Bush but didn’t, but now Trump is in and I don’t care for him,” Bell said, according to the court document. Bell then went on to say either, “I’ll try to shoot him” or “I’ll just shoot him”, referring to Trump.
The off-duty officer recorded part of the conversation and later reported it to the FBI and U.S. Secret Service.
According to the Complaint, Bell was interviewed by the FBI in December of 2023 after making disturbing statements on YouTube. Those statements included that he had purchased a plane ticket to Kansas City, Missouri, for December 14, 2023, and intended to overdose on Zoloft during the flight to cause an emergency landing.
He was also taken into protective custody in February 2025 after reportedly threatening to kill his psychiatrist.
After his April 5 arrest, Bell denied making threats toward Trump during an interview with an investigator, despite the off-duty officer’s recording and statements.
Bell holds a private pilot license and has flown small aircraft out of Oxford County Regional Airport and said he would fly to places like Bangor, Augusta, and North Conway.
He was also fired in January from his job as a software engineer at a company based in Kansas City, for making threats that he was going to put “bugs in
his code,” as well as leak information should he ever acquire a security
clearance.
Bell is charged with one count of making a threat against the president, a felony under federal law. He faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.
As of Monday, no defense attorney had been assigned. He has a preliminary set for April 16 in the U.S. District Court in Portland at 3 p.m.
