A man arrested Saturday after he
tried to get on the stage at a Donald Trump campaign rally in Ohio
reportedly told police he planned to grab the microphone and yell that
Trump is a racist but didn't intend to hurt anyone.
The
Dayton Daily News reported that it obtained a report from Dayton police
that included comments 22-year-old Thomas DiMassimo of Fairborn made to
officers after his arrest. The newspaper said DiMassimo told officers
he gave his car keys to his girlfriend before he rushed the stage
because he anticipated being arrested.
The
newspaper said DiMassimo vaulted over waist-high metal railings,
muscled past security guards and nearly got on the stage at the end of
Trump's rally before Secret Service agents tackled and handcuffed him.
Video shows Trump, the front-runner in the Republican presidential
campaign, turning around after hearing the commotion followed by agents
surrounding him protectively. Trump was campaigning ahead of Tuesday's
Ohio primary
DiMassimo was
released on bail Saturday after being charged with inducing panic and
disorderly conduct. DiMassimo, an acting major in the theater program at
Wright State University, couldn't be reached for comment Sunday. It's
unclear if he has an attorney.
The
Daily News also reported DiMassimo was involved in an anti-racism
protest at Wright State in April. Video from the protest shows him
dragging an American flag behind and then standing on it.
Trump
on Twitter thanked the Secret Service for acting so quickly on and
implied that DiMassimo has ties to the Islamic State group, an assertion
dismissed by experts.