1 of 2 | The Martin County Sheriff’s Office, which is north of Palm Beach County, said it stopped a vehicle and had “taken a suspect into custody” after an apparent “assassination attempt” against former President Donald Trump at his golf course on Sunday. Photo courtesy Martin County Sheriff’s Office
Sept. 15 (UPI) — Former President Donald Trump said he is “safe” after the FBI is “investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination” while the presidential candidate was on his golf course in West Palm Beach on Sunday afternoon.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, is in custody and was identified as the suspect, three senior law enforcement officials told NBC News. He lives in Kaawa, Hawaii, but previously resided in Greensboro, N.C.
The shooting comes two months after a bullet grazed Trump’s ear in an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pa.
In a new fundraising email, Trump said his “resolve is stronger than ever after another attempt on my life.”
“I will never slow down. I will never give up,” he wrote. “I WILL NEVER SURRENDER! I thank God every day for having supporters like you on my side. On November 5th, WE WILL MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
A Secret Service agent spotted a man and opened fire after it was believed he may have been taking aim 300 to 500 yards — two holes — ahead of Trump, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said during a news conference. An AK-47 gun, scope, two backpacks with ceramics and a GoPro camera were recovered near Trump International Golf Course.
Bradshaw said that his office was alerted at 1:30 p.m. EDT of shots fired by Secret Service agents at the private golf course.
An agent saw a barrel with a scope sticking out of a fence and “engaged” with the suspect before he fired, Bradshaw said.
“We are able to catch a witness that came to us and said, ‘Hey, I saw the guy running out of the bushes, he jumped into a black Nissan and I took a picture of the vehicle and the tag,’ which was great,” Bradshaw said.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office, which is north of Palm Beach County, said it stopped a vehicle and had “taken a suspect into custody believed to be connected to a shooting incident at Trump International in Palm Beach County,” about 44 miles away.
“There was a very serious incident down there,” Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said during a news conference at the scene.
The investigation has been turned over to other local and federal agencies.
Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg said at the news conference in West Palm Beach state charges are being prepared. The man also likely will face federal charges.
The suspect was apprehended near Stuart and Palm City, and was calm, Snyder said.
“There was a very urgent BOLO (be on lookout)” from FBI, Secret Service and PBSO, and “we immediately flooded I-95,” Snyder said.
A member of the road control unit spotted the vehicle.
“We pinched in on the car, got it safely stopped and got the driver in custody,” Snyder said about the suspect who was alone and not armed.
Northbound State Road 714 was closed for a few hours where the suspect was apprehended. There also was a serious crash during the chase.
Trump’s motorcade moved 4.5 miles east to his Mar-a-Lago resort in the town of Palm Beach, after the incident, a source told NBC News.
Secret Service quickly posted some information after the incident.
“The Secret Service, in conjunction with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, is investigating a protective incident involving former President Donald Trump that occurred shortly before 2 p.m. The former president is safe,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement on X.
The Secret Service, in conjunction with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, is investigating a protective incident involving former President Donald Trump that occurred shortly before 2 p.m. The former president is safe. @pbso will have more details soon. pic.twitter.com/yWNvvKD3IC– Anthony Guglielmi (@SecretSvcSpox) September 15, 2024
After the incident, Secret Service moved him to safety, but there was no evidence that Trump was targeted.
He was between the fifth and sixth hole when the incident occurred.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said on X he had spoken with Trump after the incident. “He is one of the strongest people I’ve ever known. He’s in good spirits and he is more resolved than ever to save our country,” Graham said.
Just spoke with President Trump. He is one of the strongest people I’ve ever known.
He’s in good spirits and he is more resolved than ever to save our country. https://t.co/9CWaeFrOpX– Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 15, 2024
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed on the “security incident,” the White House said in a statement Sunday.
“They are relieved to know that he is safe. They will be kept regularly updated by their team,” the White House added.
Also briefed was Attorney General Merrick Garland, who oversees the FBI. Homeland Security controls Secret Service.
“What we need right now is for the public to avoid the area around the golf course,” Jeffrey Veltri of the FBI Miami field office said at the news conference. “We will continue to support this investigation with the full resources of the FBI.”
Trump returned to Florida after appearances near Los Angeles and the Bay Area; Tucson, Ariz.; Las Vegas and Salt Lake City with the latter Saturday.
A busy road in front of Mar-a-Lago Club is open when the former president is not at the residence. After the first shooting, the road was closed even when Trump wasn’t there.
Trump International Golf Club was the first course acquired by The Trump Organization in 1999. The 330-acre course includes 5.2 acres of bunkers, 40 acres of lake, five scenic waterfall features and 900 Royal Palm trees, according to its website.
“The golf course is surrounded by shrubbery, so when somebody gets into the shrubbery, they’re pretty much out of sight, all right, and at this level that he is at right now, he’s not the sitting president,” Bradshaw said.
“If he was (sitting president), we would have had this entire golf course surrounded. But because he’s not, security is limited to the areas that the Secret Service deems possible. So, I would imagine that the next time he comes to the golf course, there’ll probably be a little bit more people around the perimeter. But the Secret Service did exactly what they should have done.”