Police deployed at a campaign rally for presidential candidate Donald Trump in California, on Saturday, contacted a male driver.
It was found that the man was in possession of an illegal hunting rifle and a loaded pistol.
The man was arrested smoothly. The incident should not affect Trump or the participants in the campaign meeting.
This was stated in a statement issued by the Riverside Sheriff's Office province.
According to The Press Enterprise, Sheriff Chad Bianco says they believe the person arrested planned to kill Trump, and that police stopped it after the man presented a fake VIP pass and press pass at a security checkpoint.
– Bianco says, according to the newspaper: – We may have stopped another assassination attempt.
On the other hand, the New York Post quoted unnamed police sources as saying that the FBI did not believe this was an assassination attempt.
He was released on bail
Press Enterprise reported that the arrest took place about 4.8 kilometers from the location of the election meeting.
The person arrested is said to be a 49-year-old man from Las Vegas. The weapons were found in a black SUV during a security check at 5 p.m. local time, a few hours before Trump took the stage.
Al-Sharif says that the man was part of a far-right organization that opposes the authorities of the federal government, as many American media outlets wrote. According to the New York Post, he must register as a Republican.
The 49-year-old was released on $5,000 bail, according to media outlets.
According to ABC, the man is due to appear in court on January 2 next year.
Previous assassination attempt
Last September, a man was arrested for trying to shoot Donald Trump near his golf club in Florida. The suspect, 58-year-old Ryan Roth, left a message with an acquaintance in which he himself described an assassination attempt.
Also in July, the presidential candidate was subjected to an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Then Trump was shot in the ear.
The alleged perpetrator, Thomas Matthew Crooks (20), fired several shots. One audience member died and two others were injured.
Watch videos from the dramatic seconds following the assassination attempt in July:
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