New details have emerged about the second attempted assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
The FBI was tipped off in 2019 that the suspect in Sunday’s apparent attempted assassination, Ryan Wesley Routh, was in possession of a firearm despite being a felon. The agency, however, was unable to verify the complaint and passed the information to local law enforcement in Hawaii where Routh lived at the time, officials said at a press conference on Monday.
The suspect did not fire any shots and did not have a line of sight to Trump, according to Acting Director Ronald Rowe Jr. of the U.S. Secret Service.
Rowe also said that “additional assets” for Trump were in place at the time of the incident. President Joe Biden had wanted extra security for both Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, according to Rowe.
Trump’s golf outing was an “off-the-record movement,” meaning it was not on the 45th president’s official schedule, though agents still had a security plan in place, Rowe said.
“What was critical to this was the quick response and hypervigilance” of Secret Service agents, he said.
Incident Details
A Secret Service agent was walking the perimeter of the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday when he spotted the muzzle of a rifle through the fence along the tree line. The agent immediately fired his service weapon in the direction of the rifle, according to authorities.
The suspect, later identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, ran away and drove off in a black Nissan. Authorities located his vehicle on the highway shortly afterward with the help of a tip from an eyewitness.
Routh was taken into custody by officers from the Martin County Sheriff’s Office on Interstate 95 near West Palm Beach.
Agents later found a digital camera, a backpack, a loaded SKS-style rifle with a scope, and a black plastic bag containing food. The serial number on the rifle was obliterated, according to the DOJ’s criminal complaint.
Officials tried to interview Routh but he invoked his right to an attorney, according to Jeffrey B. Veltri, special agent in charge at the FBI’s Miami field office.
Trump Praises Law Enforcement
Trump was evacuated to a safe area after the incident and was unharmed.
The former president has since thanked the Secret Service and law enforcement for successfully protecting him.
“THE JOB DONE WAS ABSOLUTELY OUTSTANDING,” Trump wrote in a post on X. “I AM VERY PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!”
President Joe Biden told reporters that the Secret Service “needs more help” and that he is glad that Trump is safe.
Suspect Charged
Routh was charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
The suspect, 58, appeared in court for the first time on Monday morning where the judge told him that he qualified for a federal public defender because he has little or no assets to his name.
Routh was convicted of felonies in North Carolina in December 2002 and March 2010.
A detention hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 23, while Routh’s arraignment is set for Sept. 30.