A British man was arrested at a weekend Trump rally in Las Vegas after attempting to grab a police officer’s gun and intending to kill Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican party’s presidential nominee.
Court documents showed that Michael Steven Sandford was in the U.S. illegally. He overstayed his visa from the UK. Sandford is 19 year old white male, according to court documents.
Sandford was attempting to get close to Trump at a rally at the Mystere Theater located inside the Treasure Island Casino. He told a police officer that he wanted get Trump’s autograph. Sandford said that he grabbed the police office’s pistol “to shoot and kill Trump,” according to a Secret Service Special Agent. Sandford was arrested, charged with an act of violence, and was denied bail by Federal Magistrate Judge George Foley.
The 19 year old stated that if he was unsuccessful in Las Vegas, he had a back up plan. He was going to try and kill Trump at an upcoming Phoenix, AZ rally. He already reserved tickets for that rally. Sandford’s plan was in the making for about a year, according to court documents.
Sanford said that he visited a local gun range the day before the rally. He wanted to learn how to shoot a 9mm Glock pistol, a similar type of gun that a police officer carries. In addition, he stated that he never shot a gun before. Police confirmed Sandford’s testimony after visiting the Battlefield Vegas range. The police spoke with an employee who provided Sandford with shooting lessons.
Sandford told authorities that if he were back “on the street tomorrow,” he would attempt to kill Trump again. Sandford told Secret Service Agents that he had been in the U.S. for about a year and a half. He drove to the San Bernardino, California area before coming to Las Vegas on June 16. He was living out of his car.
