COVENTRY — Days after she took the helm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Kristi Noem paid a surprise visit to northern Vermont on Thursday.
Though the nature of her unannounced trip was not immediately clear, it came 10 days after a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed in a shootout during a traffic stop on Interstate 91 in Coventry. Authorities have said that those implicated in the incident have ties to people of interest in separate killings in California and Pennsylvania.
Noem, whose department oversees the border patrol, was seen touching down at Northeast Kingdom International Airport in Coventry around 2 p.m. Thursday in a plane with U.S. Coast Guard markings. Local, state and federal officials appeared to be awaiting her arrival. She exited the plane on the airport tarmac and entered a car in a nine-vehicle motorcade.
Officials on the ground before Noem’s arrival declined to comment on the nature of her visit. It was not clear who accompanied her, nor where her motorcade went. The visit did not appear to be publicized in advance.
Requests for comment to the Department of Homeland Security were not immediately returned.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem makes surprise visit to Vermont following shooting of border patrol agent.