Michael Sandford: Jailed Trump accused 'sorry for everything'

Michael Sandford has been in a US jail since his arrest in June

The mother of a Briton accused of trying to shoot and kill US presidential candidate Donald Trump has said he is "sorry for everything".

Lynne Sandford was allowed to visit her 20-year-old son, Michael, in jail in the US for the first time on Thursday.

Mr Sandford, from Dorking in Surrey, is accused of trying to grab a police officer's gun to shoot Mr Trump at a Las Vegas rally on 18 June.

Ms Sandford said she did not "for one minute" believe he meant any harm.

"He's very remorseful and glad that nothing happened, nobody got hurt, and he just feels terrible about the whole thing and the effect that it's having on the family."

Michael Sandford was detained during a US presidential rally for Donald Trump

Ms Sandford said they were able to spend the whole meeting "hand-in-hand through the wire mesh".

"At the end we put our cheeks together and I was crying and he felt one of my tear drops come through the mesh, so we actually had contact after all."

Ms Sandford, who lost contact with her son after he left home to travel around America in January 2015, said: "He has actually said to me: 'It's imperative you understand, mum, I would never under normal circumstances do anything like this. You know that don't you?' and I said 'yes of course I do'.

"I know something went very wrong with his mind at that time."

Lynne Sandford believes her son should serve any sentence in the UK

She said her son needed care for a number of mental health conditions, including autism, severe OCD, anxiety, depression and previously anorexia - and had previously tried to take his own life twice.

She has argued he should serve any sentence in a psychiatric hospital in the UK.

Mr Sandford is also charged with being in the country illegally and disrupting government business.

He is due to stand trial on 3 October unless he accepts a plea bargain, his lawyer Saimo Chahal said.

He faces up to 10 years in a US prison if found guilty.

More than £32,000 has been raised on a crowdfunding page set up to help the family pay for legal fees.