Ryan W Routh, the 58-year-old man suspected of planning to assassinate Donald Trump, has been charged with two gun-related crimes in federal court a day after being spotted with a rifle on the perimeter of the former United States president’s golf course in Florida.
Phone records suggest the suspect may have been lying in wait for nearly 12 hours, hiding in the bushes with a loaded SKS semi-automatic rifle, according to court documents filed on Monday.
Routh, who appeared briefly in federal court in West Palm Beach, did not fire any shots and never had Trump in his line of sight, the Secret Service said.
“The FBI is conducting its investigation of this incident as an assassination attempt upon the former president,” the US Attorney for the Southen District of Florida, Markenzy Lapointe, told a press conference on Monday afternoon.
Routh was arrested on Sunday after allegedly fleeing the crime scene and is being held in custody on charges of illegally possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
US Secret Service agents stationed on the golf course ahead of Trump opened fire on the suspect after they noticed the muzzle of a rifle sticking through a fence that lines the course.
The gunman fled in an SUV, leaving behind the rifle, which was fitted with a scope, as well as two backpacks and a GoPro camera, according to police. The man was stopped soon after by heavily armed law enforcement officers on Interstate 95, a busy highway in a neighbouring county, and put up no resistance.
Police say the licence plate on his vehicle had been reported stolen from another car.
Second assassination attempt in two months
Trump is scheduled to unveil a new cryptocurrency business on X on Monday night at his private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, where he lives, before resuming his presidential campaign for events in Michigan on Tuesday and New York on Wednesday.
The incident has raised new questions about the violent nature of US politics and how an armed suspect was able to get so close to Trump, just two months after another gunman fired at him during a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing his ear with a bullet.
Trump’s personal schedule is not made public, so investigators will be trying to find out how the gunman knew of his golfing plans. However, the Republican presidential nominee is an ardent golfer and it is no secret that he likes to fit in a round whenever he is visiting his Florida home.
The Secret Service, which protects US presidents and presidential candidates, has been under intense scrutiny since the botched handling of the July attempt on Trump’s life.
The service bolstered Trump’s security detail following the July 13 attack, in which the gunman was shot dead by responding agents. Trump was also due to meet the new head of the Secret Service in person on Monday after the former chief resigned in the wake of the July shooting.
Trump posted a message on social media on Sunday thanking the Secret Service and law enforcement for keeping him safe, calling them “brave and dedicated Patriots” and adding that it was “certainly an interesting day!”
He also blamed President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, for the apparent assassination attempt. He claimed the suspected gunman was acting on Democrats’ “highly inflammatory language,” though authorities have not yet offered evidence of any motive.
Biden and Harris were briefed on the matter and each issued a statement condemning political violence. Harris added that she was “deeply disturbed” by the day’s events and that “we all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence”.
Biden said he had directed his team to ensure the Secret Service “has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety.”
Searching for clues
Routh has at least two prior felony convictions, both in North Carolina, according to court records. In 2002, he pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered fully automatic gun, according to the county district attorney’s office, and was sentenced to probation. He was also convicted of possessing stolen goods in 2010.
The FBI is likely combing through Routh’s prolific social media posts searching for clues regarding his alleged planning of the crime and his motive for wanting to kill the president.
Records show Routh lived in North Carolina for most of his life before moving to Hawaii in 2018. In 2020, he made a social media post backing Trump’s re-election, but in more recent years, his posts have expressed support for Biden and Harris.
Routh is a staunch supporter of Ukraine and travelled there after Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion, seeking to recruit foreign fighters, according to an interview with The New York Times last year.
Ukrainian officials distanced themselves from Routh on Monday and The International Legion, where many foreign fighters in Ukraine serve, said it had no links with Routh.
Profiles on X, Facebook and LinkedIn with Routh’s name contained messages of support for Ukraine as well as statements describing Trump as a threat to US democracy.