Former US President and Republican nominee Donald Trump is reportedly safe after the Secret Service foiled another assassination attempt on Sunday. The Secret Service agents spotted a gunman in bushes near the property line of the golf course at Florida and fired at him.
The second bid on his life comes two months after a gunman fired at Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Trump was playing a round of golf near his Mar-a-Lago home when a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle with a scope in the bushes outside of the course. The Secret Service fired at the man, who managed to flee. He was later arrested.
His identity was not released during Sunday's news conference though leading media organisations identified him as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh of Hawaii.
Besides the AR-style rifle, the law enforcement officials also recovered two backpacks and a GoPro camera, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said in a news conference.
Breaking: This Absolutely was an assassination attempt. Full Press Conference with all details known so far of the shooting at Trump's Golf Course. pic.twitter.com/43RcYbPX2r
— 🇺🇸🇺🇸Red White and True News🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@RWTNews) September 15, 2024
Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement that Trump was safe after the incident. Trump left the golf course in his motorcade soon after the incident and headed back to his Mar-a-Lago resort, sources told NBC.
The former President also ent an email to supporters saying there were "gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumours start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL!".
The former president was golfing with his friend and donor Steve Witkoff when shots were heard. Bradshaw added that the Secret Service agents saw a rifle barrel poking out from bushes about 365 to 460 meters away from Trump. The agents immediately fired at the gunman, who dropped his rifle and other items before fleeing in a black Nissan car.
A witness, however, spotted the gunman and managed to take photos of his car and license plate before he escaped. "The Secret Service did exactly what should have been done," Bradshaw added.
An alert was issued immediately by law enforcement to statewide agencies with the information on his vehicle. The suspect was apprehended on I-95 about 40 miles (65km) from the golf course.
Biden, Harris react
President Joe Biden said in a statement that he had been briefed on the situation and that he was relieved that the former President was unharmed.
"As I have said many times, there is no place for political violence or for any violence ever in our country, and I have directed my team to continue to ensure that Secret Service has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President’s continued safety," Biden said.
In a separate post on X, Harris said she had been briefed and added, "I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America."
