A former Republican congressional candidate has been charged with stealing ballots during a test of a voting system in Madison County, Indiana, state police said Tuesday.

During the Oct. 3 test, which involved four voting machines and 136 candidate ballots marked for testing, officials discovered two ballots were missing, according to Indiana State Police.

Election fraud is rare in the United States, and courts have dismissed multiple lawsuits alleging voter fraud brought by former President Donald Trump and some of his Republican allies that accused Democrats of stealing the 2020 election. Trump faces Vice President Democrat Kamala Harris in the November 5 presidential election.

For four years, Trump maintained his false claim, supported by most Republicans in Congress, that the 2020 election was stolen. As a result, some states and counties have stepped up their precautions.

Surveillance video showed Larry Savage, 51, a precinct committeeman, folding and pocketing both ballots after receiving instructions about the validity of the ballots, police said.

A search warrant was issued and Savage’s residence was later searched, police said, adding that officers found the missing ballots in his vehicle.

“We unequivocally condemn any form of criminal electoral interference. We appreciate the efforts of law enforcement in pursuing justice and will continue to monitor this situation as the case unfolds,” Griffin Reid, communications director for the Indiana Republican Party, said in a statement.

Savage faces charges of destroying or misplacing a ballot and theft, according to online records. There is no defense lawyer for him and he has been released on bail.

Before turning himself in Tuesday morning, Savage said he was innocent and described the charges as “elaborate.”

Savage ran unsuccessfully to become the Republican nominee for Indiana’s Fifth Congressional District. He got less than 2% of the vote in his party’s primary.

Victoria Spartz, who currently represents the district, won the race and will face Democratic congressional candidate Deborah Pickett in the election.