The Secret Service missed a Glock in a gym bag at President Trump’s Virginia golf club. Its owner made it through screening, had lunch, and went swimming before realizing he still had the pistol with him. He reported it himself.
Trump was on the property that afternoon, August 31, 2025. More than a year later, Judicial Watch has obtained the agency’s account of the breach through a federal lawsuit. The group released 14 heavily redacted pages on October 8. The member arrived around noon for lunch and a swim. According to an assistant special agent in charge’s email, he went through a metal detector, and someone visually searched his bag. He then ate on the patio and went to the pool.
His afternoon continued until he found the pistol while changing clothes and notified security at about 3:53 PM An agent’s email explains why he came forward:
"Upon changing his clothes after using the pool, [redacted] realized that he had inadvertently left his Glock 43 pistol in his gym bag and that the bag was searched without the pistol being found. It was at this time that the member approached a [redacted]-stander at the employee entrance and advised of the situation because he “cares about POTUS”."
Investigators could check his account against the cameras. They watched him enter, searched his bag, and then carried it around the club, including the pro shop, locker room, and pool. They interviewed him and saw the pistol themselves.
No elaborate attempt to beat security. A bag with a handgun inside passed a visual inspection.
RedState first reported the story in September 2025, based on firsthand accounts of the incident and an official response from the agency, more than a year before the Secret Service was forced to hand over its own records.
The Secret Service said its surveillance footage showed the member had stayed away from the president throughout his visit. It removed the employee responsible for the search from operational duties, then placed that employee on administrative leave while it reviewed the incident.
By August 2025, Trump had already survived the shooting in Butler and an assassination attempt at his Florida golf course. Yet someone searched this member’s bag and sent him on his way with the Glock still inside.
Getting the paperwork required a federal lawsuit. Judicial Watch submitted its FOIA request on November 18, 2025. The Secret Service acknowledged it in January and invoked a time extension, then went silent. By April 28, Judicial Watch had heard nothing and filed suit. The agency hadn't made a determination, hadn't explained itself, and hadn't produced a single record.
Tom Fitton, Judicial Watch’s president, had little patience for either the missed weapon or the effort required to obtain the records:
"The Secret Service is a dangerous mess. Given the previous attempts on the president’s life, it is highly disturbing that this type of security lapse could occur—and that it takes a federal lawsuit to get a fuller picture into how a person was able to get a gun through a Secret Service checkpoint."
Putting one employee on leave is not an answer. It names who missed the pistol. It says nothing about how a visual bag search failed to catch a handgun, or what the agency actually changed before Trump returned to that course. A president who has already survived two assassination attempts deserved both.
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