The suspect arrested in connection with the alleged assassination attempt on Donald Trump did not fire any shots during the incident. The interim head of the Secret Service, Ronald Rowe, said on Monday that the man did not have a clear view of the former president and did not fire his weapon. “He also did not shoot at our officers,” Rowe continued.
The US authorities identified the arrested suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh, who has a criminal record. According to investigators, the 58-year-old, armed with a rifle, had hidden in the bushes on the edge of Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday while the former president was playing golf there.
Secret Service agents spotted the intruder and opened fire on him. He initially managed to escape but was later arrested.
On Monday, the man, who has a previous conviction, was charged with illegal possession of a weapon in an initial court hearing. The suspect’s next summons is scheduled for September 23, and formal charges are expected to be filed a week later.
The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting current and former presidents, came under massive criticism after the first assassination attempt on Trump on July 13 in the state of Pennsylvania. At that time, a man fired several shots at Trump at an election rally in the small town of Butler, which the 78-year-old only survived by a hair’s breadth. The then Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle then resigned.
