Ryan Wesley Routh was apparently set up outside a chainlink fence surrounding Donald Trump’s Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida, with an AK-style rifle, two backpacks containing ceramic tiles, and a GoPro camera. A Secret Service agent saw the rifle poking through the fence and shrubbery and opened fire, causing Routh to flee.
He was caught about 45 miles north on Interstate 95, by Martin County deputies.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said Secret Service agent was “a hole or two” ahead of the ex-president, and the would-be gunman was 300 to 500 yards away from Trump, as CrimeOnline reported. It’s not clear if Routh got off a shot, but he left behind his gun, the backpacks, and the cameras when he fled.
According to the Associated Press, Routh lived in North Carolina for most of his but reportedly moved to Hawaii in 2018, where he and his son for a time ran a business building sheds.
He frequently posted on social media about the war in Ukraine and was apparently trying to raise money and recruit volunteers to fight against Russian invaders of that country. The Associated Press filmed him at a demonstration in Kyiv in 2022 holding a sign urging the defeat of Russia.
Oleksandr Shaguri, representing Ukraine’s foreign legion, told CNN that Routh contacted them several times about serving in a military unit but was not allowed to serve.
“The best way to describe his messages is – delusional ideas,” Shaguri said. “He was offering us large numbers of recruits from different countries but it was obvious to us his offers were not realistic. We didn’t even answer, there was nothing to answer to. He was never part of the Legion and didn’t cooperate with us in any way.”
He also posted that he was a supporter of Trump in 2016 but shifted his support. in 2020 to then US Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, who was running for the Democratic nomination for president at the time and has since joined Trump’s re-election team this year, The AP said. NBC News reported that he also supported Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ run for the nomination in 2020 and called Joe Biden “Sleepy Joe,” using one of Trump’s nicknames for the current president.
He registered as an unaffiliated voter in North Carolina in 2012 and most recently voted in person in North Carolina’s Democratic primary in March, according to The AP. Donation records show he has donated $140, using his Hawaii address, to ActBlue, which supports Democratic candidates, since 2019.
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[Featured image: Ryan Wesley Routh/Martin County Sheriff’s Office]
