A suspect is in custody in connection with what the FBI is calling another apparent assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, this time at one of Republican nominee’s Florida resorts.
The FBI said in a statement that the agency responded Sunday to Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach Florida and that they are “investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump.”
According to law enforcement officials Trump was golfing around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, when the Secret Service opened fire on Ryan Wesley Routh, who they allegedly saw in possession of an AK-style rifle.
According to his campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung, Trump is doing well after the shooting.
“President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity. No further details at this time,” he said in a statement.
Both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were made aware of the event, the White House said in a statement released via pool reporters.
“The President and Vice President have been briefed about the security incident at the Trump International Golf Course, where former President Trump was golfing. They are relieved to know that he is safe. They will be kept regularly updated by their team,” they said in the unattributed statement.
Trump, in a fundraising email sent not long after the shooting, said that “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!”
“Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER!” the former president said, capitalization his.
Secret Service personnel apparently noticed Routh while patrolling a hole ahead of Trump on the golf course, and engaged after the man allegedly pushed the barrel of the firearm through a fence. Trump was whisked away in an armored vehicle shortly after the agent began firing, according to Fox News.
According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, Routh’s weapon was equipped with a long-range scope and he was carrying a backpack filled with ceramic tiles and a GoPro camera. He was just 400 to 500 yards from the former President when an agent opened fire.
Depending on the exact model of the rifle, the 7.62 millimeter round generally chambered in the AK variety of weapons can be point target accurate at that distance, or capable of hitting a person about half the time when fired by an average skilled shooter from that range.
The weapon was apparently recovered nearby to where agents opened fire, after the uninjured suspect fled the scene in an SUV. A bystander captured a picture of the vehicle and shared it with law enforcement.
Routh was found dozens of miles away, after Palm Beach County issued a general “be on the lookout” call for support.
“Northbound I-95 at 714 is shut down. Based on BOLO information released by Palm Beach County, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office has stopped a vehicle and taken a suspect into custody believed to be connected to a shooting incident at Trump International in Palm Beach County,” the Sheriff’s office said via their Facebook page.
Martin County Sheriff William Synder told local television reporters Routh didn’t seem surprised when apprehended.
“He never asked, ‘what is this about?’ Obviously, law enforcement with long rifles, blue lights, a lot going on. He never questioned it,” he said, before describing the man’s “calm” and “flat” demeanor.
As of this reporting many questions remain, including how Routh could have known Trump’s schedule, which is not published, and what lead to his apparent plan to shoot the former President. Law enforcement officials told the Associated Press they are looking into a motive.
The incident comes about two months after agents shot and killed a man after he opened fire on the former President at a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
The bullet in that assassination attempt “pierced” the former president’s ear and nearly struck his head. A rally attendee, volunteer Fire Chief Corey Comperatore, was killed by the gunman.
“Again folks!” Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. wrote on social media in response to the most recent event.
“My father is running out of lives here,” Eric Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity.
The Harris-Walz campaign, just hours before the incident at Trump’s club, shared a message centered on gun violence and pointing out that the survivors of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting are old enough to vote in this election cycle.
“Donald Trump told gun violence survivors to ‘get over it’ and, just last week, his running mate JD Vance called school shootings ‘a fact of life,’” they wrote. “Vice President Harris will turn the page on Trump’s dangerous rhetoric and extreme Project 2025 agenda and instead chart a new way forward that gives every American the freedom to live safe from gun violence.”
Vance said he spoke to the president shortly after the shooting.
“I’m glad President Trump is safe. I spoke to him before the news was public and he was, amazingly, in good spirits. Still much we don’t know, but I’ll be hugging my kids extra tight tonight and saying a prayer of gratitude,” he said via the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Harris said via her campaign social media accounts that she had “been briefed on reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his property in Florida, and I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America.”
Herald wire services contributed to this reporting.
