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Guy Caught Peeing At Gold Line Station Arrested With 'Cache Of High-Power Weapons' [Updated]
A man caught urinating in public at the Sierra Madre Gold Line Station turned out to be in possession of a dangerous "cache of weapons," several of which were loaded.
According to a statement from the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, "observant deputies" working a foot beat Wednesday afternoon at the station "contacted" the man (presumably after they saw him peeing) and found the kind of weapons bounty typically reserved for a low-level arms dealer. The man in question was in possession of "a loaded handgun restricted for law enforcement use; a loaded, high-power firearm; two loaded, high-capacity magazines; a suppressor; and other dangerous items," according to the release.
The Sheriff's Department will hold a press conference at 4:30 p.m. and we will update this story as more information becomes available.
Update [4:45 p.m.]: At a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Sheriff Jim McDonnell credited the Sheriff's Department transit police with thwarting "a possible attack" at a Pasadena Metro station. Deputies said that Christopher Goodine, the heavily-armed 28-year-old suspect, had been carrying a black duffel bag "just like anybody would carry to a gym." The bag contained the aforementioned cache of weapons, along with a notebook with unidentified writings and a bible. McDonnell said that there was no evidence linking the suspect to terrorism. City News Service reports that Goodine is now being held in lieu of $10,000 bail pending a Friday court appearance in Pasadena.
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.@LACoSheriff McDonnell credits #LASD Transit deputies with thwarting a possible attack after arresting man with cache of firearms pic.twitter.com/Zz05OAhXQB
— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) June 22, 2017
.@TransitLASD deps arrest man w/dangerous cache of weapons @metrolosangeles Sierra Madre Gold Line sta Still keeping u safe when u #gometro https://t.co/tq8NVb7NBt
— LASD Transit Services Bureau (@TransitLASD) June 21, 2017
"We were there at the right time, doing what we do every day," one of the deputies said at the press conference, adding that an officer saw the man urinating, "stopped him, and that's how we got to this." There were "probably two people in the area" while the man was urinating who ignored him at the time, according to the deputy.
Authorities reported that the notebook containing unidentified writings that may not have been in English, and that it had "been given off to somebody who can look at it."
Fox 11's Pete Wilgoren reported on Twitter that the cache of weapons included a loaded AR-15 rifle, rope, and a machete-type knife, along with other weapons.
"But for the grace of god we could have had a tragedy today in Los Angeles," Sheriff Jim McDonnell said.
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