понедельник, 13 июня 2016 г.

The LAPD arrested a man headed for the LA Pride parade with guns and explosives in his car

LaceySilky 47yo Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, United States

thatroni 30yo Dekalb, Illinois, United States

hornyashell51492 19yo Roxbury, New York, United States

erinmoreno 24yo Tinley Park, Illinois, United States

The LAPD arrested a man headed for the LA Pride parade with guns and explosives in his car

LAPD police Reuters

Police in Santa Monica, California, arrested a man with guns and explosives in his car early Sunday morning.

The man told police he was headed for the Los Angeles Pride parade in West Hollywood, according to the LA Times.

This arrest comes hours after a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, claimed the lives of at least 50 people and left dozens more injured. It is the largest mass shooting in US history.

Santa Monica police picked up James Howell after neighbors spotted the man "loitering" and knocking on doors. Police talked to the suspect, found his comments suspicious, and decided to search his car, which had a license plate from the state of Indiana.

Officers found an assault rifle sitting in Howell's passenger seat, Santa Monica police Lt. Saul Rodriguez said.

That prompted them to search the whole car. They found two more assault rifles, high-capacity magazines and ammunition and a five-gallon bucket with chemicals that could be used to make an explosive device, police said.

Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks initially tweeted that Howell told officers he wanted to "do harm" at the gay pride event, but she later corrected her statement to say only that Howell said he was going to the parade, about seven miles from the scene of the arrest.

So far, officials have found no connection to this arrest and the tragedy in Orlando.

"I want everyone here today to know, we are safe, we are protected, our law-enforcement officials are here," Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said during a press conference.

For more on this, head to the LA Times, we'll be updating this post as information comes out as well.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.