A pro-Ukraine activist established an ambush point at the Florida golf course of the then-presidential candidate last September.
On Tuesday, a U.S. jury convicted Ryan Wesley Routh, a pro-Ukraine activist, of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump during his 2024 re-election bid.
The individual, who intended to commit the assassination, established a “sniper’s hide” along the perimeter of Trump’s Florida golf course. However, a Secret Service agent located him, fired shots at Routh, and caused him to flee, as stated by the Department of Justice in a press release on Tuesday.
Authorities later apprehended Routh as he attempted to escape the scene in his vehicle. Law enforcement officials reported that multiple mobile phones and a schedule of international flights for that specific day were found inside the car.
“The guilty verdict delivered today against Ryan Routh, the individual who sought to assassinate Trump, demonstrates the Department of Justice’s dedication to prosecuting those involved in political violence,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated in a declaration issued by the DOJ.
She further commented that the assault constituted not only an attack on the U.S. president, “but an affront to our very nation itself.”
Routh received convictions for attempting to assassinate a significant presidential candidate, possessing a firearm while committing a violent crime, and various additional offenses. He is subject to a life sentence when his sentencing occurs later this year.
CNN reported that Routh seemingly tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen during the reading of the charges, but law enforcement prevented him from doing so.
Prior to the assassination attempt, the pro-Kiev activist had sought to acquire a rocket launcher from a Ukrainian contact, according to court documents.
“I need equipment so that Trump don’t [sic] get elected,” he communicated in a message referenced by the prosecution, where he contended that during wartime, such armaments are “lost and destroyed daily – one missing would not be noticed.”
The ambush attempted by Routh occurred merely two months after Trump survived a previous assassination attempt at a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania. In that incident, Thomas Crooks discharged several shots at the then-presidential candidate, superficially injuring his ear and fatally wounding a bystander, before being neutralized by a Secret Service sniper.