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A British man accused of snatching a police officer's gun and attempting to assassinate Donald Trump will appear in court today.

Michael Sandford, 20, could face 30 years in prison for allegedly trying to kill the billionaire after telling police he wanted his autograph during a rally in Las Vegas.

Sandford, from Surrey, told police he had been plotting the attack for a year - but he had only shot a gun for the first time two days before the attempt on June 18.

The Robots Wars fanatic travelled to the Treasure Island casino in Nevada to kill Mr Trump, according to court documents.

(Image: Reuters)

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As he appears in court today, the 20-year-old's mother said she fears if he is jailed he may take his own life, and has called for him to be returned to the UK.

Lynne Sandford told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme: "I would like him to be deported so he can be back in the country and can get psychiatric help and that way he could see the family that still adore him.

(Image: Reuters) (Image: FameFlynet)

"Jail is no place for him. He needs help, but not prison."

She said her son had previously tried to kill himself and had been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome when he was 13.

He had to be sectioned as a teenager after suffering from anorexia, she added.

Sandford, from Dorking in Surrey, has been charged him with one count of impeding or disrupting government business and official functions and two counts of being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm.

According to Nevada court documents, Sandford told a policeman at the rally that he wanted Mr Trump's autograph before he attempted to seize the officer's gun.

During a police interview, when asked why he attempted to grab the weapon, Sandford replied: "To shoot and kill Donald Trump," the document showed.

He had driven to Las Vegas from Californa on June 16, and went to a shooting range the next day, where he said he learnt how to use a gun for the first time, it is claimed.

(Image: Reuters)

Sandford - who had been living in the US for around 18 months - told investigators he expected to die in the attempt on June 18.

He also claimed to have booked tickets for another Trump rally in Phoenix, Arizona, in case he was unable to attempt to take the billionaire's life in Las Vegas, the documents said.

(Image: Getty)

Sandford's father Paul Davey previously said his son would struggle to even name the president and feared he may have been brainwashed.

He also said the 18-year-old was so gentle by nature he would not even let his family use fly spray.

The 50-year-old said he has no idea why his son would attempt to shoot the billionaire presidential candidate but said they had told American authorities they were worried about his behaviour but claimed they refused to act.

(Image: SWNS)

He said: “He’s never shown any violent tendencies before, he’s never been a bad person, he’s a nice kid and literally wouldn’t hurt a fly - he used to tell us not to use fly spray because he didn’t want any flies to die.

“Looking back, I don’t want to use the term radicalised but we don’t know who he has been speaking with - this just isn’t him.

(Image: Facebook)

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“It’s an absolute shock, he’s never been violent in the slightest, he’s always been a polite and peaceful boy.

He said the incident could have been a “cry for help.

Pictures have also emerged form inside the young man's bedroom, showing how he decorated his room in camouflage and army-style netting while hanging almost a dozen imitation guns on the wall.

The disturbing images also show his walls plastered with movie and PlayStation2 posters most of them from games which uses extreme gun violence.

Sandford, who is in custody, is due to be arraigned when he appears at the Lloyd D. George federal district courthouse in Las Vegas at 3pm local time (11pm BST).