Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was safe on Sunday after the Secret Service foiled what the FBI described as an “apparent assassination attempt” during his golf outing at his West Palm Beach course in Florida.
Secret Service agents spotted a gunman hidden in bushes along the boundary of the golf course, a few hundred yards from Trump’s location, according to law enforcement officials.
The gunman abandoned an AK-47-style rifle and other belongings at the scene and escaped in a vehicle but was subsequently apprehended.
This incident, occurring just two months after Trump was targeted at a Pennsylvania campaign rally, causing minor ear damage, underscores the security challenges for presidential candidates amid an intensely divided campaign, with the election just over seven weeks away.
The circumstances of how the suspect knew Trump would be golfing remain unclear, but this latest attack certainly brings additional scrutiny to the security measures in place.
Media outlets including CNN, Fox News, and The New York Times, citing unnamed sources, identified the suspect as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh of Hawaii. The FBI has not commented on these reports.
Reuters located social media profiles on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn linked to a Ryan Routh, matching the suspect’s description from the reports.
However, confirmation that these are the suspect’s profiles is pending as law enforcement has not commented, and access to the Facebook and X profiles was blocked shortly after the incident.
The profiles linked to Routh portrayed him as a staunch supporter of Ukraine, and some posts suggested he was involved in recruiting efforts for the Ukrainian conflict.
Secret Service agents noticed a rifle barrel emerging from the bushes hundreds of yards away from Trump as they secured the golf course, recounted Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. The agents responded by firing at the gunman around 1:30pm (17:30 GMT).
The assailant dropped his weapon, left behind two backpacks and other items, and fled in a black Nissan car. A witness managed to photograph the car and its license plate, aiding in the suspect’s eventual capture.
Bradshaw praised the Secret Service’s response but did not identify the suspect or suggest a motive.
Following the incident, an alert with details of the suspect’s car was sent to state law enforcement, leading to his arrest by deputies in neighboring Martin County along I-95, roughly 40 miles from the incident site.
Fox News host Sean Hannity, having spoken with Trump and his golfing companion Steve Witkoff, reported that both recounted hearing shots as they played.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, in a New York Times interview, relayed a conversation with Trump in which the former president expressed his appreciation for his Secret Service detail.
Bradshaw noted that the full security measures of a presidential golf game were not in place, citing Trump’s current non-presidential status.
Trump addressed the incident in an email to supporters, reassuring them of his safety and preempting rumors.
The White House confirmed that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed on the incident and were relieved to know Trump was safe, with Biden affirming his commitment to providing the Secret Service with the necessary resources to protect Trump.
