A Maryland delegate selected by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign for the Republican National Convention was indicted on Wednesday on federal weapons and child pornography charges.
The federal indictment alleges that Caleb Andrew Bailey, 30, of Waldorf, Maryland, illegally mailed a cache of ammunition and explosives through the US Postal Service and illegally possessed a machine gun and child pornography. The indictment also further alleges that Bailey “attempted to use and did use a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct to produce child pornography.”
Joe Cluster, the executive director for the Maryland Republican Party, confirmed to Mother Jones that Bailey was approved by the Trump campaign as a delegate to the GOP convention from Maryland’s 5th Congressional District. Bailey could not immediately be reached for comment.
Questions remain as to how the Trump campaign has vetted its delegates for the GOP national convention. Earlier this month, Mother Jones reported that the Trump campaign approved a white nationalist leader as one of its delegates from California. That prompted the delegate, William Johnson, to resign. The Trump campaign blamed Johnson’s inclusion on a “database error.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Bailey’s indictment.
UPDATE, 4:15 p.m. EDT: The Trump campaign has issued a statement: “We strongly condemn these allegations and leave it in the capable hands of law enforcement. He will be replaced immediately.”