Updated September 17th, 2023 at 21:28 IST

Man carrying loaded pistol creates ruckus at RFK Jr campaign event, gets arrested by LAPD

An armed man impersonating a US Marshall and carrying a loaded pistol was arrested on Friday after he created a ruckus at RFK Jr.'s campaign event.

Reported by: Bhagyasree Sengupta
Image: AP / @RobertKennedyJr | Image:self
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An armed man impersonating a US Marshall and carrying a loaded pistol was arrested on Friday after he created a ruckus at one of Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s campaign events in Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed the arrest on Saturday stating that the man was carrying a loaded pistol along with spare ammunition. Following the arrest, the White House, hopeful, took to X, formerly known as Twitter to express his gratitude to the LAPD.

“I’m very grateful that alert and fast-acting protectors from Gavin de Becker and Associates (GDBA) spotted and detained an armed man who attempted to approach me at my Hispanic Heritage speech at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles tonight,” RFK Jr. wrote on X. “The man, wearing two shoulder holsters with loaded pistols and spare ammunition magazines was carrying a U.S. Marshal badge on a lanyard and beltclip federal ID. He identified himself as a member of my security detail,” he added. The armed man was identified as 44-year-old  Adrian Paul Aispuro. Kennedy went on to share the photo of the armed rebel. 

Kennedy demands for Secret Service Protection

In the same tweet, the nephew of former US President John F. Kennedy urged the current President Joe Biden to provide him with Secret Service protection. “Armed GDBA team members moved quickly to isolate and detain the man until LAPD arrived to make the arrest. I’m also grateful to LAPD for its rapid response,” the American political Scion wrote on Twitter. “I’m still entertaining a hope that President Biden will allow me Secret Service protection. I am the first presidential candidate in history to whom the White House has denied a request for protection,” he furthered. According to Fox News, Aispuro continues to remain in police custody. 

In July this year, Kennedy claimed that his request for Secret Service Protection was denied by the Biden administration.  “Since the assassination of my father in 1968, candidates for president are provided Secret Service protection.  But not me.  The typical turnaround time for pro forma protection requests from presidential candidates is 14 days.  After 88 days of no response and after several follow-ups by our campaign, the Biden Administration just denied our request,” the White House hopeful wrote on X. However, Kennedy’s assertion turned out to be factually incorrect. According to CNN, the vast majority of candidates in modern American presidential primaries never received Secret Service protection, since they were not deemed as “major” candidates. The authorities are obliged to provide Secret Service Protection to major candidates within a period of 120 days. 

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Published September 17th, 2023 at 21:28 IST