A former SAS soldier who heroically rescued dozens of hostages in a terrorist attack has been hired by incoming US President Donald Trump as one of his elite personal bodyguards.
Christian Craighead was thanked by Mr Trump during his first term in office after he led an operation to save British and American hotel guests who were being held captive by jihadi group al-Shabaab in Kenya’s capital Nairobi.
Now The Mail on Sunday can reveal he will be part of the security detail for Mr Trump’s inauguration in Washington DC on January 20, after the President-elect told aides that Mr Craighead’s ‘eagle eyes’ wouldn’t have missed a rooftop shooter during the failed assassination attempt on him in Pennsylvania in July.
Mr Craighead, 48, is said to be ‘working in the shadows’ around Mr Trump and has been tasked with the key role of organising reconnaissance at locations where he is due to appear in public.
A close family friend told the MoS: ‘Trump first reached out to Chris after the terror attack, telling him how much he admired his actions. They have kept in regular touch ever since. He’s also good friends with Trump’s son, Don Trump Jnr, and his former partner Kimberly Guilfoyle, having spent time with them in Miami.’
Wednesday marks the sixth anniversary of al-Shabaab’s attack on the DusitD2 hotel complex.
Mr Craighead – not his real name – had been posted to Nairobi to help train Kenya’s security forces in counter-terrorism. He was off-duty and out shopping when he was told hostages had been taken. He collected weapons from his truck and, according to fellow SAS veteran Chris Ryan, ‘organised the entire operation’.
Mr Craighead, 48, is said to be ‘working in the shadows’ around Mr Trump and has been tasked with the key role of organising reconnaissance at locations where he is due to appear in public
Mr Craighead led an operation to save British and American hotel guests who were being held captive by jihadi group al-Shabaab in Kenya’s capital Nairobi (pictured right)
Wednesday marks the sixth anniversary of al-Shabaab’s attack on the DusitD2 hotel complex
While 22 people died in the shootout, 27 emerged alive – some carried to safety by Mr Craighead after he killed two terrorists.
Footage of his heroism went viral on news and social media outlets, and he was awarded the UK’s second-highest military honour – the Conspicuous Gallantry Award.
But his actions caused friction within the SAS, which prides itself on discretion. Mr Craighead quit the regiment shortly afterwards, claiming he had been shunned by comrades. His planned book on the attack, titled One Man In, was blocked by the Ministry of Defence.
Mr Craighead’s friendship with Mr Trump began when the then President invited him to the White House to offer thanks for his actions in Nairobi.
In May he introduced Mr Trump to thousands of supporters at a rally in New Jersey. Then, after the assassination attempt in July, Mr Trump, according to a family friend, ‘told his inner circle that Chris’s “eagle eyes” wouldn’t have missed the shooter’.
They added: ‘In October last year Trump personally requested a meeting and asked Chris to become one of his bodyguards.
Christian Craighead with Donald Trump in 2019. The former SAS soldier was thanked by Mr Trump during his first term in office, after he led an operation to save British and American hotel guests held hostage in Nairobi, Kenya
Mr Craighead accepted a role as one of Mr Trump’s bodyguards last month, and will be alongside the president-elect at his inauguration
‘In December Chris accepted the role, after agreeing financial terms and sorting his US residency. Since then he has been working in the shadows around Trump, organising reconnaissance around his work diary, and will be alongside him when he is sworn into office on January 20.’
Last year the MoS reported how Mr Craighead’s girlfriend, Tobi-Jayne Cadbury, 37, a scion of the chocolate family dynasty, had been bombarded with revenge-porn messages from the elite soldier’s ex, British Army dentist Major Jennifer Wilson, 42.
Wilson later pleaded guilty at Aylesbury Crown Court to harassment and malicious communications charges.
She was ordered to carry out 100 hours of community work and given a ten-year restraining order banning her from contacting her victims.
Mr Craighead was unavailable for comment last night.