Man accused of attempting to kill Trump, denied bail

Las Vegas: A British man accused of trying to take a police officer's gun and kill Donald Trump during a weekend rally in Las Vegas will not be released on bail. Federal Magistrate Judge George Foley said at a hearing on Monday that Michael Steven Sandford, 20, was a potential danger to the community and a flight risk. Sandford, who wore leg irons and appeared to tremble during the court hearing, is charged with an act of violence on restricted grounds and was assigned a federal public defender. According to Secret Service agents, Sandford went to a Trump’s rally on Saturday at the Treasure Island Casino and approached a Las Vegas police officer to say he wanted an autograph from Trump. The criminal complaint said Sandford was arrested after grabbing the handle of an officer's gun in an attempt to remove it from a holster. Public defender Heather Fraley, while speaking about the accused said “Sandford appeared to be competent and hadn't been diagnosed with a mental illness but has autism and previously attempted suicide. He was living out of his car, didn't have a job and was in the country illegally after overstaying a visa”. His mother told court researchers that he was treated for obsessive compulsive disorder and anorexia when he was younger. Sandford told officers he had been planning an assassination for about a year and was convinced he would die in the attempt. He said he also reserved a ticket for a Trump rally in Phoenix, scheduled for later in the day, as a backup plan.