The suspect is, Trump International Golf Club According to multiple reports on Monday, the church, located in West Palm Beach, Florida, has a long documented record of pro-Ukraine activities.
The suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was arrested Sunday after he allegedly shoved the muzzle of an assault rifle through a chain-link fence near the golf course where former President Donald Trump was playing the fifth hole, but this is not the first time Routh has been identified.
According to a New York Times report, Routh was a pro-Ukrainian activist who had volunteered in Eastern Europe to rally support for Ukraine's military effort and had also sought out Afghan veterans who had fled the Taliban to fight in the country's war.
Law enforcement sources identify Ryan Wesley Routh as suspect in Trump shooting
Ryan Routh is accused of pointing a rifle at former President Donald Trump while he was playing golf at a West Palm Beach, Florida, golf course on Sunday. This is being investigated as a second assassination attempt against Trump. (Source: Fox News Digital)
He was also interviewed Semaphores Ukraine is set to welcome foreign troops in March 2023, and has expressed dissatisfaction with the Ukrainian government's cumbersome procedures for allowing foreign soldiers to join the country.
“Ukraine is tough to work with. Many foreign soldiers either stay in Ukraine for a week and then leave, or have to move from unit to unit to find a place where they are respected and valued,” Routh told Semaphore, adding that he was “yelled at” for suggesting an Afghanistan veteran.
“They're afraid that everyone is a Russian spy,” he said.
Routh also spoke to the Romanian edition of Newsweek in 2022 about recruitment efforts for the country's military's ground arm, the International Defense Forces of Ukraine.
Donald Trump safe after shooting outside Palm Beach golf club
Ryan Routh, the suspected assassin of former President Donald Trump, was seen being taken into custody on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in body camera footage released Monday. (Martin County Sheriff's Office)
“So, why am I here? … to me, a lot of other conflicts are grey, but this one is definitely black and white,” Rouse said. He told New Seek. “It's a battle between good and evil. It's like a story, and every movie we've seen is definitely a battle between good and evil.”“
Routh also claimed to have fought in the war and reportedly bragged about his involvement on his social media accounts. His pro-Ukraine advocacy also appears to have led him to write a 291-page book, “Ukraine's Unwinnable War,” which is still available on Amazon.
“I feel I must state clearly that Ukraine will not win on its current path, but that it is essential for the world that Ukraine win, and that is why this book is so important for all of us to recognize that losing is not an option, and what we must do to win,” Rouse wrote in a caption. “I certainly did not write this to make money. That is not important at all. What is crucial is that we have an open, daily discussion about the major problems facing Ukraine and what each of us should do to solve them.”
The X account, believed to belong to Routh, repeatedly sent Ukraine-related posts to X about being ready to fly to Ukraine to take on Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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“I am flying to Ukraine to fight. We need to launch a media campaign urging all people around the world to come to Ukraine and join the fight. We need hundreds of thousands of civilians to make the cost of war high for Putin and an influx of fighters,” an account believed to be Routh's posted on Feb. 17, 2022.
After repeatedly sending messages expressing his willingness to fight for Ukraine, X's account posted in April that Routh was in Kyiv.
“I am in Kyiv and would like to use Independence Park to create a tent city for all the foreigners here and encourage thousands more foreign civilians to come and support Ukraine,” X's post read.
Trump has repeatedly said that if elected, he would end the conflict between Ukraine and Russia within 24 hours. When facing off against Vice President Kamala Harris in an ABC debate, Trump made it clear that he wanted Ukraine to win the war. “Just get it done. Go ahead. Negotiate and get a deal done,” Trump said.
Trump shooting: A timeline of the assassination attempt
FBI agents investigate outside Trump International Golf Club following the assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo/Lynn Sladky)
A background check previously reviewed by Fox News Digital found that Routh had multiple run-ins with police over decades in North Carolina.
The majority of the arrests were for simple possession, driving without a license, driving with an expired registration and driving without insurance.
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Fox News Digital's Emma Colton and Brooke Kurt contributed to this report.
