A man was arrested at a Donald Trump rally in Las Vegas after he tried to grab a police officer’s gun. He later said he was attempting to kill the presidential candidate, according to The Associated Press.
Michael Steven Sandford, 19, was charged with an act of violence on restricted grounds, the AP reports. Authorities said that Sanford went to the Trump campaign event at the Treasure Island Casino on Saturday, June 18, and told a police officer he wanted the presumptive Republican nominee’s autograph. He then tried to take the officer’s gun.
The suspect told officers he had been planning to assassinate the billionaire businessman for about a year and was convinced he would lose his own life during the attempt. He also said he reserved a ticket for the subsequent Trump rally in Phoenix later on Saturday as a backup.
He explained to authorities that he went to the Battlefield Vegas shooting range on Friday, June 17, to learn how to use a pistol. Detectives visited the range and an employee confirmed they provided Sanford with a shooting lesson.
Although Sanford had a United Kingdom driver’s license on him at the time, he told Secret Service agents he has been in the U.S. for about a year and a half and lived in Hoboken, New Jersey. He drove cross-country to San Bernardino, California, and then to Las Vegas on Thursday, June 16.
Sanford is scheduled to appear in court on Monday, June 20.
The former Apprentice star, 69, has yet to comment on the incident.
