New Details Emerge on Suspect in 2nd Trump Assassination Attempt: What We Know

Ryan Wesley Routh speaks during an interview at a rally in central Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 27, 2022, in a still from video. AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images

The suspect accused of hiding out with a gun near former President Donald Trump’s Florida golf course in an attempt to assassinate the former president appeared in a federal court on Sept. 23 as prosecutors released a box of his belongings that included a note he wrote apparently confirming that he sought to carry out the assassination.

Prosecutors charged Ryan Routh, 58, with two gun crimes after he allegedly pointed a rifle through a fence while Trump was playing golf at his West Palm Beach course on Sept. 15. Routh hasn’t entered a plea.

A federal judge denied bond during a Sept. 23 court hearing, agreeing with prosecutors’ arguments that Routh is a flight risk and a risk to the community and should be held before his trial.

Letter Found

In court documents submitted earlier on Sept. 23, prosecutors claim that Routh wrote a letter months ago that showed he planned the alleged assassination attempt on Sept. 15, with the letter stating that it “was an assassination attempt.”

“I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster,” Routh allegedly wrote.

The letter, prosecutors say, was left behind in a box that he dropped off at an unnamed individual’s home “several months prior.” That person spoke to federal officials after Routh was detained last week.

That person’s identity and relationship to Routh were not explained in the court papers. The person did not open the box that was left behind months ago until last week’s arrest, prosecutors said.

According to the court documents, Routh said in the letter that he would offer a $150,000 bounty to anyone who could successfully assassinate the 45th president. In his first court appearance last week, Routh said he made $3,000 per month before his arrest and had “zero funds,” no assets beyond two trucks, and no savings.

In the letter, he also was critical of Trump’s pulling the United States out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, according to prosecutors. Trump had long been critical of the deal, brokered by the Obama administration in 2015, to limit Iran’s nuclear testing in exchange for lessened sanctions.

The box also contained ammunition, a metal pipe, building materials, tools, phones, and various letters, prosecutors said.

A notebook found in Routh’s car was filled with criticism of Russia in the Ukraine–Russia conflict and notes about how to join the war on behalf of Ukraine. Social media posts made by Routh also indicate he was an ardent backer of Ukraine in the ongoing war and that he even traveled there on at least one occasion.

Went to Golf Course a Month Prior

Cellphone records from two of the recovered phones show that Routh traveled from Greensboro, North Carolina, to West Palm Beach on Aug. 14, prosecutors wrote.

Further, on “multiple days and times from Aug. 18, 2024, to Sept. 15, 2024, Routh’s cellphone accessed cell towers located near Trump International and the former president’s residence at Mar-a-Lago,” the filing said.

A cellphone that was recovered by authorities showed a Google search of how to travel from Palm Beach County, Florida, to Mexico.

Federal officials also found a list with dates in August, September, and October and venues where the former president had appeared and was scheduled to appear, prosecutors say.

Photos of Rifle, Note Published

The Sept. 13 court papers showed new photographs of the SKS-style rifle Routh allegedly possessed, showing the gun with a scope that appeared to be tied down with straps. An area where the serial number should have been was also scratched off, according to the documents and the photo.

It’s not clear what company manufactured the rifle. The FBI told The Epoch Times last week that it would not comment on the make or other details about the firearm.

Also unclear is how and where Routh obtained the rifle. Court papers show that it was loaded with 11 rounds, including one in the chamber.

A photo released by the Department of Justice in court papers submitted on Sept. 23, 2024, shows the SKS-style rifle allegedly used by Ryan Routh. U.S. Department of Justice

Book Cited

The Department of Justice’s detention memo also cites a book authored by Routh last year in which he lambasted Trump’s approach to foreign policy, including in Ukraine.

In the book, he wrote that Iran could assassinate Trump for having withdrawn the United States from the aforementioned nuclear deal.

According to the memo, he wrote: “[I] must take part of the blame for the [person] that we elected for our next president ... But I am man enough to say that I misjudged and made a terrible mistake and Iran I apologize.”

“You are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment and the dismantling of the deal,” the book added. “No one here in the U.S. seems to have the [courage] to put natural selection to work or even unnatural selection.”

An Epoch Times review of the book, which was available on Amazon and is titled “Ukraine’s Unwinnable War: The Fatal Flaw of Democracy, World Abandonment, and the Global Citizen-Taiwan, Afghanistan, North Korea, WWIII and the End of Humanity,” found that he also criticized the former president for the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach.

A photo released by the Department of Justice in court papers submitted on Sept. 23, 2024, shows a note allegedly written by Ryan Routh about wanting to assassinate former President Donald Trump. U.S. Department of Justice

No Motive Yet

Routh faces two felony charges—possessing a firearm as a felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number. He fired no shots at the golf course on Sept. 15, and a Secret Service agent fired multiple shots in his direction after spotting a gun barrel emerging through the tree line. Routh was later arrested driving northbound on Interstate 95 in another county in Florida.

The FBI has characterized the incident as an attempted assassination of Trump, meaning it’s likely that Routh will face additional charges as prosecutors build their case against him.

The FBI said that Routh has not been cooperative. When he was interviewed by FBI agents last week, he invoked his right to an attorney, the bureau said.

U.S. officials have said Routh did not have a line of sight to Trump, who was a few hundred yards away at the time. Trump and his campaign said that he was not harmed in the incident, and the Secret Service’s acting director, Ronald Rowe, told reporters last week that the agency is providing the highest level of security for the former president.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.