By Adam Goldman and Glenn Thrush
The individual detained close to Donald Trump’s golf course in Florida initially approached the boundary fence near the sixth hole roughly 12 hours before the former president was scheduled to tee off there, as per data obtained from the individual’s cellphone. However, officials assert that the suspect never aimed at Trump.
Ryan W. Routh, 58, did not fire any shots on Sunday, stated Ronald Rowe, the agency’s acting director, during a press briefing. Instead, agents shot at him, thwarting what officials have labeled as a likely assassination plot by someone with an extensive criminal history who had contemplated the ethics of assassination in a self-published work.
Here’s what we’re following:
— The allegations: Routh made his initial court appearance on Monday in federal court, where he was charged with possession of a firearm as a felon, which could result in a prison term of up to 15 years, along with possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. The FBI’s chief agent in Miami mentioned that the bureau had no evidence indicating Routh was collaborating with anyone else.
— The individual: In a lengthy online rant titled “Ukraine’s Unwinnable War,” Routh disparaged the former president, calling him a “buffoon” among other insults. In one heated segment regarding the dismantling of the Obama administration’s nuclear agreement with Iran, the writer appears to imply that Iran, and possibly readers, were “free to assassinate Trump.”
— The firearm: Cellphone records suggested that Routh entered the woods adjacent to Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, nearly half a day before a Secret Service agent noticed what seemed to be the barrel of a firearm. The complaint elaborated on the later discovery of a loaded SKS-style rifle—a semi-automatic rifle created by the Soviets in the 1940s—equipped with a scope, along with food supplies and a digital camera.
— Assigning responsibility: This incident raised new concerns regarding the Secret Service’s protective capabilities after a would-be assailant got alarmingly close to Trump for the second time within approximately two months. President Joe Biden remarked to journalists on Monday that the Secret Service “requires more assistance,” while Trump attributed the occurrence to what he termed Democrats’ “inflammatory language,” despite labeling them the “enemy from within.” Speaking via livestream on social media Monday night, Trump provided his first public account of Sunday’s events, stating that he heard gunfire in the distance and was subsequently grabbed and moved by Secret Service agents. “I would have loved to have sank that last putt,” he mentioned.
