Ryan Routh charged with attempted assassination of Donald Trump

Department of Homeland Security police officers and other law enforcement officials stand watch outside the Paul G. Rogers Federal Building and US Courthouse during a hearing on the detention of Ryan Wesley Routh, suspected of the attempted assassination of former US president Donald Trump. Photo / AFP

A man accused of staking out Donald Trump’s Florida golf course with a rifle has been indicted on a charge of attempted assassination of a political candidate.

Ryan Routh, 58, was already facing two gun-related charges after authorities said he pointed a rifle through a fence at Trump’s golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida on September 15 while Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, was golfing there. He has been ordered to remain in custody awaiting trial.

A federal prosecutor said the US Justice Department would ask a grand jury to approve the more serious attempted assassination charge, which carries a maximum of life in prison.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday called the attempted assassination a “heinous act” and said the Justice Department would “spare no resource” on the case.

Routh has not yet entered a plea.

Alleged would-be Trump assassin Ryan Routh following his arrest in Martin County, Florida, on September 15. Photo / AFP

Prosecutors have in recent days revealed evidence that allegedly pointed toward a plan to kill Trump. They alleged that months before the incident, Routh dropped off a letter to an unidentified person alluding to “an assassination attempt on Donald Trump”.

They said Routh spent a month in South Florida and mobile phone data showed him near the golf course and Trump’s Florida residence at Mar-a-Lago. He was found with a handwritten list of dates and venues where Trump spoke or was expected to appear, according to court filings.

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A US Secret Service agent searching the golf course ahead of Trump opened fire after discovering the gun poking through the fence, causing Routh to flee, prosecutors said. He was arrested within an hour on a Florida highway.

Routh was initially charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.