A California man was arrested Thursday after police say he tried to enter Mar-a-Lago for a fifth time as part of an apparent effort to talk to President-elect Donald Trump.
Zijie Li, 39, is now facing a second charge of trespass after warning on top of an existing charge he received in July.
Li’s first run-in with law enforcement occurred on July 19, six days after the first assassination attempt on Trump, according to a probable cause affidavit, and amid heightened security surrounding the club. He had entered Mar-a-Lago at the main gate and was stopped by Secret Service.
He told the agent that he had information suggesting that China was involved in the assassination attempt and wanted to leave documents with them.
Police told Li that he was trespassing and gave him a warning, saying if he returned, he would be arrested.
Then, on July 30, officers saw Li drive towards the Mar-a-Lago police checkpoint, according to the affidavit. An officer stopped him and saw that he had put the club as the destination on his GPS. Then he let him go. About two hours later, officers again saw him driving nearby, at which point they stopped him and told him not to return.
The next day, Li again tried to enter Mar-a-Lago. This time, he was arrested on charges of trespass after warning.
On Oct. 30, Li returned. This time, he went to a nearby home with a Trump 2024 sign outside and asked the woman who lived there if she was a member of Mar-a-Lago and if she could drive him inside in her car, according to a second probable cause affidavit. She called the police and identified him.
Police then Baker Acted Li for about a week; Florida’s Baker Act allows for temporary detention due to mental health. On Thursday, officers were notified that Li had been released. The same day, a Palm Beach Police detective was notified that Li, this time in an Uber, was at the entrance to Mar-a-Lago.
Officers again arrested Li on a charge of trespass after warning. He had his first appearance Friday.
“The Palm Beach Police Department, in speaking with the United States Secret Service, believe that with the increased attempts by Li to gain entrance into Mar-a-Lago in an effort to make contact with the President Elect that another incident with Li could result in the necessity to use an escalation of enforcement,” an officer wrote in the affidavit.
An assistant state attorney said in court that Li is in the United States on a student visa, WPTV reported.
On Friday, a Palm Beach County judge revoked bond for Li after prosecutors argued in a motion that he violated the terms of his release in the first trespassing case. By trespassing again on Thursday, they wrote, he had failed to uphold an order to have no contact with Mar-a-Lago or Trump.
Li is now being held at the Palm Beach County Main Detention Center.
