Senator Rand Paul has been assaulted at his home in Bowling Green, KY.
The suspected has been identified as Rene Boucher, a 59-year-old male from Bowling Green, who has since been arrested.
“Senator Paul was blindsided and the victim of an assault,” Kelsey Cooper, a spokeswoman for Paul, said in a statement. “The assailant was arrested and it is now a matter for the police. Senator Paul is fine.”
Police are investigating the assault, according to the statement. Boucher has been charged with 4th-degree assault, causing a minor injury.
Boucher is an anesthesiologist and pain specialist, according to the Bowling Green Daily News. The newspaper also reports that he invented the Therm-a-Vest, a cloth vest partially filled with rice and secured by Velcro straps. Its purpose is to relieve back pain by delivering heat straight to the affected areas.
Police were not immediately clear on why Boucher allegedly assaulted Paul. The investigation is still ongoing says police spokesman Jeremy Hodges .
As reported by NBC News:
A criminal complaint says that Paul “told police that his neighbor came onto his property and tackled him from behind, forcing him to the ground and causing pain.”
The Republican senator suffered injuries to his face, including small cuts to the nose and mouth and “and had trouble breathing due to a potential rib injury.” At the time the report was made Paul was being seen by a physician and the extent of any rib injury was unclear, the complaint says.
A neighbor told NBC affiliate WAVE of Louisville that the two men have had ongoing problems and Paul was mowing the lawn at the time of the assault. A state police spokesperson would not confirm those details Saturday.
Boucher admitted to tackling Paul, the criminal complaint says.
The Kentucky State Police confirmed that the FBI were involved in the investigation, but the ongoing probe will be led by the trooper who made the arrest.