Trump’s would-be murderer Ryan Routh sought weapon to shoot down his airplane, DOJ says
Federal prosecutors say Ryan Routh, the person accused of attempting to assassinate President Trump as he golfed final September throughout the 2024 marketing campaign, additionally tried to amass an anti-aircraft weapon to shoot down Mr. Trump’s airplane.
In a submitting Monday, the federal government stated that in August, “Routh sought to buy the gadgets on-line from an affiliate Routh believed to be a Ukrainian with entry to navy weapons.”
Routh allegedly informed an affiliate to “‘ship me an rpg [rocket propelled grenade] or stinger and I’ll see what we are able to do,'” based on the courtroom doc.
“I want gear in order that Trump can not get elected,” Routh informed his affiliate.
The federal government stated Routh additionally sought to buy a .50 caliber rifle the identical month, and this rifle would have been an much more damaging and highly effective model of the one he had already allegedly obtained. Prosecutors stated Routh hoped to buy the .50 caliber rifle at a gun present, however his contact was finally not capable of find the kind of gun Routh needed till after the assassination try on the golf course.
Routh is suspected of hiding in some bushes with a gun close to Trump Worldwide, about 300-500 yards away from Mr. Trump, who was then the Republican presidential nominee, whereas he was taking part in golf in West Palm Seaside in September 2024. A member of Mr. Trump’s Secret Service element noticed his rifle within the tree line and opened hearth on the suspect, who did not hearth again. He fled by automotive, and Routh was detained about 50 miles north of the golf course.
In line with the Secret Service, Routh didn’t have a line of sight to Trump, who was taking part in just a few holes away from the place Routh was allegedly positioned.
In a courtroom submitting over the weekend, Routh’s attorneys requested a choose to suppress statements from the eyewitness who recognized him to police because the suspect at Mr. Trump’s Florida golf course. Prosecutors say Routh had plotted to kill Mr. Trump for weeks beforehand.
Legislation enforcement stated the eyewitness assertion was crucial to discovering after which charging Routh.
Routh’s protection alleged police induced or had been “impermissibly suggestive” when questioning the witness, who was allegedly proven a single {photograph} of Routh taken after he was detained.
Routh’s authorized crew claimed police created a state of affairs through which an “irreparable misidentification” would happen and requested a choose to exclude the witness identification of Routh from the trial, which is scheduled to start Sept. 8, 2025. The protection argued that the testimony could be “constitutionally inadmissible” in courtroom.
