A British man has been sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison over his attempt to grab a gun in an alleged bid to kill Donald Trump.

Michael Sandford, 20, pleaded guilty in September to being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and disrupting an official function.

He was accused of grabbing a policeman’s gun at a rally in Las Vegas in order to shoot at the candidate.

His mother says “he is remorseful over what he did”.

Lynne Sandford, from Dorking in Surrey, had previously said her son suffers from autism and should be allowed to return to the UK to carry out his sentence.

She said that after the election he feared what his punishment would be after learning that Mr Trump had won.

“Michael is afraid that because Donald Trump is now president-elect, it may have some bearing on the judge’s sentencing,” she told the Express newspaper before sentencing.

“He fears Donald Trump may intervene and choose to make an example of him.”

Sandford had faced up to 10 years in prison over the alleged assassination plot.