Armed Man Arrested at Trump Golf Club Near Los Angeles


A California man was arrested at the Trump National Golf Club near Los Angeles over the weekend after he was found with a loaded firearm and was seen taking photographs of the property on multiple occasions, the authorities said.

The arrest, on Sunday, came days before President Trump spoke at a fund-raiser on Tuesday night at the golf club in Rancho Palos Verdes, an affluent coastal community overlooking the Pacific.

The man, identified by the authorities as Jeanine John Taele of Downey, Calif., was charged with multiple weapons violations. He has not been accused of targeting Mr. Trump, and officials have not shared any evidence that his presence was tied to the president’s visit.

Mr. Teale, 38, was first seen at the golf course on Friday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a news release on Tuesday. He was wearing an earpiece and took photographs and filmed federal agents who were conducting “security-planning activities,” the prosecutor’s office said.

Federal agents in plainclothes also reported seeing Mr. Taele on Sunday, taking photos of the golf course and observing security preparations, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

During his second visit, Mr. Taele approached federal agents and “stated that he was employed by the State Department and was at the location for security detail,” the prosecutor’s office said. He also told the agents that he had a loaded gun in his car, which was in the parking lot.

After they were contacted by federal agents, sheriff’s deputies responding to the scene found Mr. Taele carrying a 16-round magazine with hollow-point rounds in his pocket. Inside his car, they found a loaded pistol with a magazine containing more hollow-point ammunition; binoculars; and a badge that read “security protection agent,” the prosecutor’s office said.

On Tuesday, local detectives assigned to the F.B.I.’s Joint Terrorism Task Force raided Mr. Taele’s home in Downey, a Los Angeles suburb, and recovered a cache of firearms and equipment, including an illegally modified AR-style rifle, a .45-caliber pistol, body armor, high-capacity magazines, ammo and radio equipment.

Detectives also found multiple notebooks containing “concerning statements,” according to the sheriff’s department.

“While we are still investigating the motives of this individual, we are thankful he was apprehended before the President’s visit,” said Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, in the news release on Tuesday. “Federal and local law enforcement stepped in early and prevented what could have been a dangerous situation from occurring.”

Mr. Taele remained in custody at the county jail on Tuesday evening. He is expected to appear at the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday. It was unclear whether he had legal representation.

In April, a gunman was charged with attempting to assassinate the president after he breached security at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington, where Mr. Trump was in attendance, and exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officials.

In February, a man was sentenced to life in prison for trying to kill the president at another one of his golf clubs, in Florida, in 2024.

And in July 2024, Mr. Trump survived an assassination attempt by a gunman while speaking at campaign rally in Butler, Pa. Mr. Trump was grazed in the ear and an attendee was killed trying to shield his family.



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