A man was arrested Saturday near a Donald Trump rally in Coachella, California, for illegal possession of several weapons, before being released on bail the same evening, the local sheriff's office said Sunday.
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The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting senior American political figures, said in a joint statement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Office of the Attorney General that “former President Trump was not in danger.”
This announcement comes after two assassination attempts against the former Republican president and candidate for the White House in recent months, and at a time when he is demanding that more resources be allocated to his security.
The suspect, described as a 49-year-old Las Vegas resident named Wim Miller, had a rifle, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine in his vehicle in Riverside County in eastern California, a sheriff's office statement said.
The statement continued, “The incident did not affect the safety of former President Trump or the event participants.”
Sheriff Chad Bianco said during a press conference that the suspect was arrested before Donald Trump arrived at the scene “in possession of several passports with different names, an unregistered vehicle with a false license plate, and loaded firearms.”
He added: “It is absolutely impossible for any of us to know what was going through his head.”
But “if you ask me at this moment, my agents probably prevented the third assassination attempt” against Donald Trump, said the elected official known for his support of the former president who spoke during the rally Saturday night.
The FBI, Secret Service and Department of Justice said in their statement that the investigation is ongoing.
The suspect was released on $5,000 bail Saturday evening and is scheduled to appear in district court on Jan. 2 on charges of “possession of a loaded firearm” and “possession of a high-capacity magazine.”
There was no immediate reaction from Donald Trump's campaign team.
The former Republican president miraculously survived an assassination attempt on July 13, when a gunman opened fire during an election rally in the state of Pennsylvania (northeast of the country), wounding him in the ear and killing an aide.
In mid-September, a man accused of trying to shoot Donald Trump at one of his golf courses in Florida was also arrested.
