A man with ammunition in his pocket and a gun in his car was arrested on Sunday 2 August outside Donald Trump’s golf course in the Los Angeles area, just two days before the American president’s visit. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Jeanine John Taele, 38, was taking photos and recording videos and had a 16-round magazine of ammunition in her pocket. Authorities later recovered a loaded handgun in his car.
The armed man, suspected of monitoring “security planning activities”, is 38 years old and originally from Downey (California): he was taken into custody outside the Rancho Palos Verdes facility by plainclothes FBI agents after they noticed his suspicious behavior.
The FBI announced the arrest while Trump arrived at the Trump National Golf Course in Los Angeles shortly after 5pm local time (2am on Wednesday 5 August in Italy), in view of his participation in an event of the Republican National Committee (RNC), linked to fundraising in view of the midterm elections (the mid-term elections which are held every four years, two years after the presidential elections).
After the arrest, local authorities searched the 38-year-old’s home and found a large quantity of firearms, magazines and ammunition, a bulletproof vest and notebooks containing “concerning statements”. Taele was charged with several serious crimes, including second-degree robbery, possession of a high-capacity magazine and possession of a short-barreled rifle. The man was also accused of illegal possession of a firearm hidden inside a vehicle. Taele has pleaded not guilty to all charges and was ordered to stay off the golf course.
Trump commented briefly on the story to Fox News: “The only thing that somehow consoles me is that they say that only presidents who leave their mark find themselves facing situations like this. And I, certainly, leave my mark.”