Man With Scope Rifle Arrested in Denver

Matt Welch | August 25, 2008

This just in, from the Denver Post:

Federal authorities have scheduled a press conference for Tuesday afternoon amid reports that a fortunate traffic stop by Aurora Police may have disrupted an assassination attempt against Barack Obama.

KUSA-TV is reporting that two men have been arrested on weapons charges after the traffic stop early Sunday.

The first man, identified by the station as Tharin Gartrell, 28, was charged with suspicion of being a felon in possession of a weapon after police found two rifles, a high-powered scope and methamphetamine in his car after the traffic stop.

Comments

EJM|8.25.08 @ 9:11PM|#

Just in case, here's the original KUSA story.

Czar|8.25.08 @ 9:14PM|#

Let him go, he might have been gunning for Hillary.

From the original article|8.25.08 @ 9:16PM|#

Authorities tell NBC News they are skeptical there was anything other than some kind of general animosity and no actual plan to do anything.

|8.25.08 @ 9:32PM|#

Authorities tell NBC News they are skeptical there was anything other than some kind of general animosity and no actual plan to do anything

Ah, meth.

EJM|8.25.08 @ 9:33PM|#

And, here are apparently newer KCNC, KDVR, and KMGH stories.

randi|8.25.08 @ 9:45PM|#

And they'd have gotten him how?

Sounds staged to me.

Thomas Paine\'s Goiter|8.25.08 @ 9:47PM|#

Sounds like a Saturday night in West Virginia to me.

|8.25.08 @ 9:50PM|#

CBS4 Investigator Brian Maass reported one of the suspects told authorities they were "going to shoot Obama from a high vantage point using a ... rifle … sighted at 750 yards."

At which point, the Secret Service officers would slap their foreheads and shout, "D'oh! Why didn't we think about a sniper in a high vantage point a few hundred yards away!"

Ah, meth. Just because you're stupid, doesn't mean you aren't trying to kill somebody.

I can only conclude that our terrorists are a lot dumber than their terrorists. There is a terrorist gap, so to speak. My solution is to get our domestic terrorists off meth, and get them chewing khat right way.

Dello|8.25.08 @ 10:03PM|#

"...police found two rifles, a high-powered scope..."

The rifle can only fire 100 yards but, Damn!, that scope can see a mile or more...

tim|8.25.08 @ 10:08PM|#

Hmm... I lived in CO for several years - they give away rifles with scopes when you open a new checking account...

Scott R|8.25.08 @ 10:10PM|#

The Rockies Inn mentioned in the KUSA story is about 6 blocks from my house. It is a great place to raise your kids if you don't mind the transient meth addicts.

|8.26.08 @ 1:52AM|#

How do we know they were there to kill Obama? Maybe they wanted to off Hillary for giving racists a bad name.

-jcr

|8.26.08 @ 9:58AM|#

How do we know they wanted anyone at the convention at all? Maybe they wanted to shoot Todd Helton. Or maybe they were just going out for beer, and like to carry their rifle just in case.

No, seriously, not everyone who carries a gun in their car is aiming to assassinate the most famous person in town.

|8.26.08 @ 11:22AM|#

CBS4 Investigator Brian Maass reported one of the suspects told authorities they were "going to shoot Obama from a high vantage point using a ... rifle … sighted at 750 yards."

See, that "750 yards" thing tipped me right off that this was non-serious. Unless, of course, like so many meth addicts this clown has a match-grade rifle, very serious sniper training, and access to a 1000-yard range.

|8.26.08 @ 4:40PM|#

I will once again point out that "But that's really stupid" is NOT, repeat NOT, a reliable indicator that a meth head does not intend to try.

Kant feel Pietzsche|8.27.08 @ 11:18AM|#

So, every tweaker with a gun is out to assasinate. hehe And every pimple-faced teen with a condom in his pocket is out to rape Barbara Bush.