The man accused of trying to assassinate Donald Trump after allegedly holding a rifle outside the former president's golf course in Florida is scheduled to appear in court on Monday to enter a plea to five federal charges. be.
Ryan Routh, 58, is expected to plead not guilty to the following charges: Including assassination attempts of the major presidential candidates. He has already been ordered to remain in jail awaiting trial.
Prosecutors allege Routh I was going to kill Trump. On September 15th, he was playing golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach. Louth, Struggling roofing contractorsprosecutors allege, wrote a self-published book criticizing the Republican presidential candidate and mailed a letter he left with an associate that mentioned an assassination attempt on President Trump months earlier.
“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, which failed,” the suspect wrote in a court filing by prosecutors.
Lawyers for Routh suggested at a Sept. 23 court hearing that the letter may have been an attempt to gain publicity, highlighting Routh's efforts to promote democracy in Ukraine and Taiwan. did.
Routh hid outside a fence overlooking the course's sixth hole, where authorities say he found an AK-47-style rifle, a bag of snacks, a digital camera and a bag containing metal plates that could withstand counterattack by the U.S. Secret Service. He claims to have discovered. Prosecutor.
A Secret Service agent patrolling the course in front of President Trump spotted Routh, noticed a rifle stuck in a fence and opened fire. Routh fled and was later arrested along a highway in Florida, prosecutors allege.
He was initially charged with gun-related offenses. Last week's indictment added charges of attempted assassination, as well as assault on a federal officer and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime.
The incident in Florida was the second apparent assassination attempt against Trump in about two months, raising questions about protections for the candidate ahead of the Nov. 5 election. Gunman wounds President Trump's right ear and kills one attendee At a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvaniabefore being killed by a Secret Service sniper on July 13.
Trump has sought to make the assassination attempt a campaign issue, arguing that the Justice Department, which indicted him in two criminal cases last year, should not be in charge of the investigation.
