LOS ANGELES — Law enforcement officials say they arrested a “suspicious” armed person at President Donald Trump’s golf course in the Los Angeles area ahead of Trump’s Tuesday fundraiser there.
Jeanine John Taele, from nearby Downey, California, was arrested and accused of carrying a concealed firearm and possession of armor-piercing or prohibited ammunition, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced Tuesday. Federal agents in plainclothes flagged Taele on Saturday after deeming his activities at the golf course suspicious, the department said in a statement.
“Investigators have identified no credible threat to our communities,” the statement said, but officials emphasized the need to investigate.
Calvin Mah, a captain with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, said local and federal authorities are still investigating Taele’s background and whether he had “any malintent” toward Trump or other people.
Taele, 38, was charged with multiple weapons violations and pleaded not guilty on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Trump has been the target of multiple assassination attempts in the last two years. In 2024, he was shot in the ear at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
A man was convicted earlier this year of trying to kill Trump at his West Palm Beach golf course in 2024. In another attack that raised alarms this spring, a gunman was charged with attempting to kill Trump at the White House correspondents’ dinner.
Taele, who remains in custody, according to authorities, could not immediately be reached for comment. It was not clear if he had retained an attorney.
The sheriff’s department said Taele walked around the grounds of Trump National Golf Course in Rancho Palos Verdes on Saturday, taking photos and videos “and appearing to monitor security-planning activities.” Deputies found a 16-round magazine in Taele’s pants pocket and a loaded pistol, along with another magazine, in Taele’s car, officials said.
On Monday, authorities said, they searched Taele’s home in Downey and found “notebooks containing concerning statements” as well as an array of weaponry that included an illegally modified AR platform rifle, high-capacity magazines and body armor.
Sheriff’s officials said they are working with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the U.S. Secret Service and continue to investigate.
Taele’s bail was set at $250,000, according to Venusse D. Dunn, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Taele was given a stay-away order from the Trump golf course, told not to leave the state of California and ordered not to possess weapons, Dunn added.
A preliminary hearing in Taele’s case is set for Aug. 26, according to Dunn. Taele also faces a second-degree robbery charge in connection with a Nov. 4, 2025, incident.
Taele is charged with illegally carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle; illegally possessing a short-barreled rifle or shotgun; and illegally manufacturing, importing, keeping for sale, or giving or receiving a large-capacity magazine.
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