Senator Rand Paul was assaulted at his home in Bowling Green, Kentucky when a local man broke into his residence and attacked him, causing minor injuries before the intruder was subdued and arrested, the Bowling Green Daily News reported.
Rene Boucher, 59, is in the Warren County Regional Jail in lieu of a $5,000 bond, according to online jail records available Saturday afternoon.
Paul suffered minor injuries, according to a news release from Kentucky State Police Post 3 in Bowling Green, which did not describe the circumstances surrounding the incident.
"Senator Paul is fine,” said Kelsey Cooper, Paul's Kentucky communications director, said "Senator Paul was blindsided and the victim of an assault," Cooper said in an email. "The assailant was arrested and it is now a matter for the police.”
A news release said troopers were called to Paul’s home at 3:21 pm Friday. According to the release, Boucher was arrested by Trooper Bartley Weaver and charged with assaulting the senator.
Local property records show a Rene Boucher owns a home on Rivergreen Lane, which is in the gated neighborhood just east of Bowling Green where Paul resides.
An arrest warrant for Boucher was issued through the Warren County Attorney's office. The charge of fourth-degree assault is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail. Warren County Attorney Amy Milliken said further charges could be brought, based on the extent of Paul's injuries.
The investigation by Weaver is continuing, and no other details were immediately available. Paul, the junior senator from Kentucky who was elected in 2011, has made headlines recently for his intransigent opposition to the Trump legislative agenda – he was the only Republican who vote against the senate’s $4 trillion budget bill. He is also a vocal critic of Obamacare, who successfully persuaded President Trump to sign an order that will allow health insurance companies to sell insurance policies across state lines.
No motive for the attack has been determined as of yet, police said.