Who Is Joshua Runkles? Armed Man Arrested At Arizona Stadium Ahead Of Charlie Kirk's Memorial Service

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A 42-year-old armed man, posing as an enforcement officer, was arrested by the Secret Service at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, a day before conservative icon Charlie Kirk's memorial on Sunday.

Both US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance are expected to attend the memorial service for the Turning Point USA founder. The event is a Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) Level 1, which allows the US administration to assign broad security resources.

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According to The Washington Post, citing a law enforcement official, the arrested man has been identified as Joshua Runkles.

He was carrying a knife, a gun, and expired law enforcement credentials when he was detained, said the report.

Runkles reportedly told Secret Service agents that he was there to provide private security and then handed them 'inactive law enforcement credentials'.

However, a TPUSA spokesperson said Runkles was hired for“advance security” by a known guest planning to attend the memorial service.

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Not much is known about Joshua Runkles. But, according to a Fox News Digital report, Runkles is a former deputy sheriff from Idaho.

The news outlet cited Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi as saying that he had entered the stadium before any 'secure perimeter' was set up.

“The individual was approached by Secret Service and stated during the encounter that he was a member of law enforcement and that he was armed. The individual is not a member of authorised law enforcement working the event and is currently in custody,” Guglielmi told the New York Post.

Joshua Runkles was taken into custody by the Arizona Department of Public Safety, where is was booked on the charges of impersonating a law enforcement officer, which is a felony in Arizona, carrying a weapon into a prohibited place, and a misdemeanour.

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A state public safety department spokesperson told NY Post that Runkles is now out on bond, but a probe is ongoing to determine why he was in the stadium.

But according to TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet, Joshua Runkles was not“attempting anything nefarious” and was just doing an“advance security for a known guest planning to attend the memorial service”.

“We do not believe this person was attempting anything nefarious; however, the advance was not done in proper coordination with the TPUSA security team or US Secret Service ,” he said in an X post.

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