Trump Crypto Honcho Flees Reporter Who Recognizes Him At Air Force One Arrival

screenshot – inset:
Sander Lutz/X

Trump memecoin business associate Bill Zanker fled when he was recognized by a reporter during President Donald Trump’s Air Force One arrival on Friday evening.

Last spring, Trump held a gala dinner for the top 220 purchasers of his “$TRUMP” meme coin, a scheme that critics from across the political spectrum have nuked as a corrupt enrichment scam.

It’s that time of year again, so Trump jetted out of DC Friday night for Palm Beach, where he will deliver remarks at a “Crypto Conference” on Saturday before attending the WHCD. But this time, he’s doing so while under fire from his own crypto investors.

New media travel pooler and Decrypt Media White House correspondent Sander Lutz spotted Zanker as the pool awaited Trump’s debarkation from Air Force One, writing on X/Twitter that Zanker appeared to have taken the AF1 ride with them.

But when he approached, Zanker quickly dipped:

As we waited on the tarmac at PBI for President Trump to disembark AF1, I spotted Bill Zanker, the man at the center of Trump’s meme coin operation.

Zanker appears to have taken the trip down to Mar-a-Lago with us from DC, as he was snacking on commemorative AF1 m&ms while we waited.

When I approached him and introduced myself, he very quickly walked away from me. He has kept a very low media profile while running numerous ventures for the president, his longtime friend.

The Trump meme coin conference is set for tomorrow, with the president making lunchtime remarks to the top 29 holders of his token. The token is down 96% from the price it hit after launching last January.

..

As we waited on the tarmac at PBI for President Trump to disembark AF1, I spotted Bill Zanker, the man at the center of Trump’s meme coin operation.

Zanker appears to have taken the trip down to Mar-a-Lago with us from DC, as he was snacking on commemorative AF1 m&ms while we… pic.twitter.com/yBx8lRT0Hw

— Sander Lutz (@sander_lutz) April 24, 2026

Lutz snapped a couple of pics before Zanker made his escape.

Trump is scheduled to speak at the closed-door conference at noon.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!