The suspected gunman in the second assassination attempt on Donald Trump never fired his weapon and was unable to establish a direct line of sight toward the former president before fleeing the scene.
Shocking new information about Ryan Wesley Routh, the 58-year-old man now charged in the attempt, was revealed by law enforcement officials in Palm Beach, Florida, one day after the attempted murder.
It turns out Routh was well known to law enforcement and had been on the FBI’s radar since 2019. It received a tip claiming the convicted felon was in possession of a firearm, officials revealed at a news conference Monday, but the tipster never confirmed the information.
The FBI, Secret Service and other federal and local officials also provided an update as conspiracy theories about Trump’s possible assassin emerge, saying it appears Routh was a lone wolf actor.
The would-be assassin left a loaded Soviet-style AK-47 rifle, known as an SKS, two bags, a digital video camera and a ceramic-coated bulletproof vest in the bushes at Trump’s golf club on Sunday.
Acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said the suspected gunman never had a line of sight toward Donald Trump and confirmed he did not fire his rifle before being attacked by agents on the former president’s protective team.
At a news conference, officials revealed that the FBI received a tip in 2019 that Ryan Wesley Routh, a felon, was in possession of a firearm.
“We have no information that anyone else was acting at this time,” FBI Miami office special agent in charge Jeffrey Veltri told reporters when asked if the shooter acted alone.
More details were shared at the press conference about the afternoon incident where Routh fled Trump International Golf Club after an officer shot him after seeing the muzzle of his AK-47 pointed toward bushes around the course where the former president was playing on Sunday.
The update included limited information discovered in the 24 hours since the incident.
“The subject, who had no line of sight to the former president, fled the scene,” acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said Monday. “He did not fire a shot or shoot at our agent, although there are reports of gunfire.”
Routh was arrested 50 miles from the club after a witness saw him flee the scene in a stolen black Nissan pickup and was able to share the license plate with police and later identify the suspect.
The FBI has so far interviewed seven witnesses and they too have revealed information.
Investigators are treating the incident as a second assassination attempt against the former president in just two months.
Authorities released an image of Routh’s belongings left at the scene on Sunday.
After Trump was shot in the ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, the USSS reviewed its handling of the 2024 presidential candidate’s security team.
Rowe took over on an interim basis when former director Kimberly Cheatle resigned following Butler’s attack.
He said on Monday: “We need to move away from a reactive model to a preparedness model.”
“There could be another geopolitical event that could put the United States in a kinetic conflict, or some other, some other issue that could result in additional responsibilities and protected persons for the United States Secret Service,” the acting director said.
“We have no choice,” Rowe continued. “Success is something we must have every day. We cannot afford failure. And to get there, we’re going to have tough conversations with Congress and we’re going to get it done.”
Routh appeared in court on Monday and was charged with two counts: possession of a firearm while a convicted felon; and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
FBI Miami Field Office Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Veltri told reporters there is no evidence to suggest Routh was working with anyone else, and that the agency received a tip in 2019 that he possessed a gun as a convicted felon.
A courtroom sketch shows a slight Routh in a dark prison uniform.
The defendant was dressed in a black prison uniform and had his hands and feet handcuffed during the eight-minute court appearance in Paul G Rogers Federal Court on Monday morning.
It is unclear where Routh obtained his rifle, as it is not a firearm that is available for purchase in Florida and the serial number is destroyed.
According to public records, Routh’s criminal record in North Carolina includes “gun violations” and “terrorist threats” in 2002, as well as a three-hour standoff with law enforcement in North Carolina.
In 2002, when Routh was 36, he was convicted of possession of a weapon of mass destruction.
He was arrested after a standoff with police where he barricaded himself inside a local roofing business in Greensboro after speeding away from a traffic stop with a firearm.
In 2019, the FBI received a tip that the convicted felon was in possession of a firearm, which constitutes another felony.
“I can also share with you that he was the subject of a previously closed complaint to the FBI in 2019 alleging that he was a felon in possession of a firearm,” Special Agent Veltri said at Monday’s press conference.
“In following up on the complaint, the alleged whistleblower interviewed, was interviewed, and did not verify, I repeat, did not verify, the initial information he provided,” he continued. “The FBI passed that information on to local law enforcement in Honolulu.”
The 58-year-old construction worker is from North Carolina but moved to Hawaii in recent years.
FBI field offices in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Honolulu, Hawaii, are tracking down and interviewing friends, family and former colleagues of Routh, according to the agency.
Rowe said of USSS operations around Trump since the first assassination attempt: “By leaving Butler, I have ordered a paradigm shift.”
