Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher who led an infamous standoff with the federal government in 2014, was denied bail in federal court and will remain behind bars as he awaits trial on charges that he threatened, assaulted and conspired against law enforcement.

US judge Carl Hoffman Jr ruled at a hearing in Las Vegas on Thursday that Bundy, 69, would pose a danger to the public if he was released, according to Natalie Collins, spokeswoman for the US attorney’s office.

The rancher, who become the unofficial leader of the anti-government land-use rights movement in the west after his high-profile conflict with federal officials, was previously denied bail in Portland, Oregon, where he was arrested last month.

Bundy had for years refused to pay grazing fees to the government to allow his cattle to use public lands. The dispute escalated in 2014 when officials attempted to seize his cattle, sparking an armed conflict that drew hundreds of supporters to his ranch in Bunkerville, 80 miles north of Las Vegas.

He avoided charges for nearly two years but was taken into custody when he attempted to travel to Oregon, where his sons Ammon and Ryan Bundy led a similar standoff with an armed occupation at a wildlife refuge.

Those three Bundy relatives, along with two of Cliven’s other sons, are now facing charges for their participation in the 2014 Nevada standoff – a conspiracy case that includes a total of 19 defendants.

Cliven’s lawyers in Nevada filed a motion requesting that he be granted release before the trial begins, arguing that he was not violent during the 2014 confrontation. “He never brandished a weapon at any federal officer. He never stood in the way of any federal officer,” his attorney Joel Hansen wrote. “He has never assaulted anyone in his life nor has he ever committed a battery on anyone.”

Federal prosecutors have painted a very different picture of the standoff, alleging that Cliven and his supporters engaged in an organized and violent conspiracy against law enforcement.

The charges against Cliven, his sons and other participants include conspiracy to impede and injure federal law enforcement officers, threatening and assaulting officers, obstruction of justice, interfering with interstate commerce by extortion and use of firearms for a violent crime.

Ammon and Ryan Bundy are also facing a slew of serious charges in federal court in Oregon for a standoff at the Malheur national wildlife refuge.

Last week, Cliven refused to enter a plea on all charges, leading a judge to enter a “not guilty” plea on his behalf.

“I would love to have my husband and my sons and all the patriots home with their families so they could prepare to fight for this,” Carol Bundy, Cliven’s wife, told reporters outside court. “If Cliven Bundy was a threat, I wouldn’t want to have him home.”