A suspect is in custody after an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a golf course

Following a suspected assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on Sunday at his golf property in West Palm Beach, Florida, the suspect is in arrest. The 58-year-old suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, seems to have been driven by dissatisfaction with US policies toward the conflict in Ukraine.

Routh discussed his attempts to find recruits for the International Legion Defense of Ukraine, a division of Ukraine’s Ground Forces, in an interview with media report Romania from June 2022.

“The question as far as why I’m here… to me, a lot of the other conflicts are grey, but this conflict is definitely black and white,” Routh said. It’s a battle between good and evil. This is a narrative; like every movie we’ve ever seen, evil is pitted against good in it.”

Routh’s Assistance To Ukraine

Sunday afternoon, John Miller, top law enforcement and intelligence expert for media reports, stated that the main emphasis of Routh’s social media profiles has been his “self-proclaimed involvement” in the war in Ukraine, including his alleged attempts to enlist fighters for the struggle. In addition, Routh said that he fought in Ukraine as that country resisted Russia’s invasion.

It seems that Routh previously discussed his efforts to enlist Afghan troops who were fleeing the Taliban to fight in Ukraine in an interview with The New York Times. Routh informed the Times at the time of the report’s publication on March 25, 2023, that he had been to Ukraine for many months in 2022.

Routh is listed as the director of the International Volunteer Center (IVC) in Ukraine on the website of the IVC, a private organization that aims to “empower volunteers” and other nonprofit organizations that work to “enhance the distribution of humanitarian aid throughout Ukraine,” according to a March 10, 2023, Semafor report.

Trump has made no secret of his doubts about arming Ukraine militarily, which prompted his party to temporarily halt vital military supplies to the nation earlier this year.

In a recent debate, Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic opponent, questioned Trump directly, “Do you want Ukraine to win this war?” Not that he said “yes.”

Trump’s Reactions and Reply

“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL!” Trump said in an email to his supporters.

“I’m not going to be stopped. “I refuse to give up!” said the former president.

After the incident, the former president, who was unharmed, went back to his house at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.

Before the news broke, Trump’s running mate, Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance, wrote on X, stating that he talked with the outgoing president and that “he was, amazingly, in good spirits.”

According to Vance, there is still a great deal “we don’t know” regarding the event.

Prior Criminal Offenses of Routh

According to media report analyst Miller, Routh was a construction worker in North Carolina before relocating to Hawaii. Additionally, it is alleged that the suspect has been arrested eight times in the past, primarily for infractions.

According to online North Carolina Department of Adult Correction records, he was found guilty in 2002 of having a weapon of mass destruction; however, the AP was unable to uncover more information about the case.

A article published in December 2002 by Greensboro, North Carolina’s News & Record said that an arrest had been made during a three-hour standoff between the guy and the police. According to reports, Routh was accused of having a weapon of mass destruction and concealing a weapon, “referring to a fully automatic machine gun.”

Donations to Politics

The suspect’s prior political involvement is revealed in an unexpected way via Federal Election Commission (FEC) data.

According to records, Routh—who was a resident of Kaaawa, Hawaii—contributed more than $140 via the Democratic fundraising website ActBlue between September 2019 and March 2020. These $1 to $25 contributions were made at a period when Routh’s employment status was recorded as “not employed” in government documents. Despite being small, his donations focused on a wide range of Democratic presidential candidates in 2020.

Former Texas Representative Beto O’Rourke, businessman Andrew Yang, millionaire activist Tom Steyer, and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren were among the recipients of Routh’s political kindness. Strangely, Routh also backed Tulsi Gabbard, a former congresswoman from Hawaii who has now drastically changed her political affiliations, defecting from the Democratic Party and joining Trump.

The Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris are conspicuously missing from Routh’s list of donors.

Posts on Social Media

Routh made many posts on X expressing sympathy for Ukraine. For instance, he wrote in March 2022, not long after the full-scale invasion: “I AM WILLING TO FLY TO KRAKOW AND GO TO THE UKRAINEN BORDER TO VOLUNTEER AND FIGHT AND DIE… Can I provide the example that we need to win?

Previous postings seem to show a change in his political position. “While you were my choice in 2106, I and the world hoped that president Trump would be different and better than the candidate, but we all were greatly disappointed and it seems you are getting worse and devolving,” he said in a June 2020 post that tagged Trump’s account.

“I’ll be happy when you’re gone,” he continued.

He has continued to support Ukraine in more recent times. In a subsequent X post dated April 2024, Routh mentioned Elon Musk, writing: “I’d like to purchase a rocket from you.” To kill Putin, I want to fill it with a nuke intended for his home bunker on the Black Sea. Would you kindly tell me the cost?”

Routh urged foreigners to join the Ukrainian military’s struggle against Russia by using his personal Facebook account. Specifically, he wanted to recruit soldiers from Afghanistan.

“Afghan Soldiers: Ukraine is somewhat interested in 3000 soldiers, so I need every soldier that has a passport to send me a copy of their passport to send to Ukraine,” he wrote in the month of October 2023.

AKM-47 Directed Towards the Golf Course

On Sunday afternoon, Trump was taking off at his golf club, Trump International Golf.

Approximately 1:30 p.m., Secret Service officials stationed close to the former president saw a rifle through the course’s outer fence, according to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw at a news conference.

The suspect was in the vicinity of holes four or five. This was around 400–500 yards from the shooter, one or two holes ahead of where Trump was playing.

The suspect gets hit and Runs Away

On the course, a member of the US Secret Service was one hole ahead of Trump’s party. After seeing the suspect in the fence-line shrubs, he “immediately engaged that individual,” according to Bradshaw. The policeman started shooting. The man got away in a Nissan SUV, leaving the gun behind.

According to Bradshaw, a witness reported to the police that he observed the guy leaping into a black Nissan car after racing out of the woods. Police were able to identify the culprit by looking up the license plate thanks to the witness’s picture of the car.

Backpacks, a GoPro, and the suspect’s weapon

Bradshaw said the guy was carrying a GoPro camera, two bags that were dangling from a fence, and an AK-style gun with a scope.

Law authorities has released photos of two black bags hanging from a chain-link fence in the undergrowth outside the course, with a gun positioned between them and pointing through a fence breach.

The GoPro camera was suspended from the side railing.

Make an arrest

According to law enforcement authorities who spoke to AP, Routh was captured without a weapon in a neighboring county after escaping in the SUV.

According to Bradshaw, the witness recognized the culprit when police brought her to the site of the arrest.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office spokesman, Teri Barbera, said that just one person of interest in the case was being questioned. Barbera provided no details on a potential reason.

Palm Beach County state attorney Dave Aronberg said that his team is preparing petitions for pretrial detention and warrants. According to Aronberg, the suspect may face federal charges in addition to the state ones that will be brought against him first.

“Our filing of the warrant and charges at the state level does not preclude the federal charges that could be coming,” Aronberg said. “But in the meantime, it looks like the warrants and a pretrial detention motion will happen first.”

Responses to the Attempt on a Life

Close Trump friend Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia wrote on X, “To the Democrats and your media warriors, Is it still believed that Donald Trump’s two assassinations constitute a “threat to democracy”?

Nine weeks after the Pennsylvania assassination attempt, the event on Sunday happened, and the Trump campaign issued an email to staff members advising them to be vigilant. The email said, “This is not a matter that we take lightly,” according to AP, which was able to access it. Our first concern is always your safety. We kindly request that you proceed with caution as you come and depart each day.”

“As we enter the last 50 days of President Trump’s campaign, we must remember that we will only be able to save America from those who seek to destroy it by working together as one team.”

The event and the subsequent inquiry were reported to Vice President Harris and President Joe Biden. “I have been briefed on reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his property in Florida, and I am glad he is safe,” she wrote. “Violence has no place in America.”

Biden made a similar declaration. “I am relieved that the former president is unharmed,” he said. “As I have said many times, there is no place for political violence or for any violence ever in our country, and I have directed my team to continue to ensure that the Secret Service has every resource, capability, and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety.”

According to Florida Governor Ron Desantis, “the people deserve the truth about the would-be assassin and how he was able to get within 500 yards of the former president and current GOP nominee.” The state will be launching a full investigation into the shooting on X.

The son of Routh describes his father as “loving” man.

Following his father’s detention on Sunday, Ryan Routh’s son Oran Routh told a media report that he hoped the situation had “just been blown out of proportion” and that his father wasn’t typically “to do anything crazy, much less violent.”

“My father, Ryan, is a kind and considerate guy who works hard and is honest. I have nothing more to say about him than that. I’m not aware of the events in Florida, and I really hope that everything has been exaggerated. Based on what I’ve heard, the guy I know doesn’t seem to be capable of doing anything extreme, much less violent. He’s a fantastic guy and a good parent, and I hope you can show him in an honest way,” he said.