Man Arrested Near Trump Golf Club with Joker Rifle

A 36-year-old man from Glendale, Arizona, faces multiple felony firearms charges after authorities arrested him near the Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, while he was armed with a loaded rifle decorated in the style of the Batman villain the Joker and wearing a ballistic vest.

Sean Steiner was taken into custody on March 29 around 5 p.m. following reports from witnesses who saw him running through traffic on Palos Verdes Drive South. Deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department responded after receiving calls about a suspicious individual hiking nearby trails earlier that day. Steiner had been observed wearing gloves, a rifle-rated bulletproof vest capable of stopping rifle rounds, and carrying a duffel bag and a step stool along with several weapons.

Upon detaining Steiner, deputies recovered a short-barreled semiautomatic rifle painted green and purple, featuring phrases such as "Why so serious?" and "Let's put a smile on that face," along with "HA HA HA HA" scrawled on it. The rifle's tip was painted orange to resemble a toy gun, but it was loaded with a round in the chamber and a full high-capacity magazine. Authorities also seized...