Trump assassination attempt suspect was on FBI's radar in 2019

By Jen Krausz on
 September 17, 2024

The suspect in custody for allegedly attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump was on the FBI's radar as early as 2019, according to an agent in Miami.

Special agent in charge of the Miami field office, Jeffrey Veltri said Monday at a press conference that the FBI received a tip that Ryan Routh, 58, possessed an unlawful firearm, but the investigation was later dropped because they didn't have enough information.

Routh lived in Hawaii at the time. He somehow ended up in Florida lying in wait for Trump on his golf course, which led to his arrest Sunday night.

Trump's golf outing was not a public event, so the public didn't even know he was going to be there.

Interim Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe claimed that counter sniper, counter surveillance agents, counter assault teams, and counter unmanned aerial systems were in place at the time of the attempted attack at the request of President Joe Biden.

Trump was not harmed in the attack, which was thwarted when a Secret Service agent saw the AK-47 poking out of the bushes near the next hole from where Trump was golfing.