Emergency services cordoned off the area outside the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach on Sunday
Former President Donald Trump was rushed to safety on Sunday after what the FBI called an apparent assassination attempt at Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach.
The incident comes almost exactly two months after a shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, which left the Republican nominee wounded and one his supporters dead.
Details are still emerging from the latest incident and about the suspect, named in court as 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh. Here is what we know so far.
How was the suspect spotted?
The incident unfolded at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, about 15 minutes from Trump’s Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago.
The gunman was first seen by Secret Service agents, who were sweeping the course ahead of the former president as he played. The agents usually go one hole ahead to perform security checks, according to police.
The muzzle of a rifle – initially described as an AK-47-style rifle by County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw – was spotted sticking through the shrubbery that lines the course. At the time, Trump was about 300-500 yards (275-460m) away from the gunman, he said.
An agent “immediately engaged” with the person holding the rifle, who fled, Sheriff Bradshaw said.
“The Secret Service did exactly what should have been done.”
How was the suspect caught?
Agents opened fire when they spotted the gunman and fired four to five rounds of ammunition.
The suspect dropped the rifle and fled in a vehicle, abandoning the weapon along with two knapsacks, a scope used for aiming a weapon and a GoPro camera, Sheriff Bradshaw said.
A witness saw the man flee from the shrubbery to a black Nissan, the sheriff said. The witness captured a photo of the car and provided it to law enforcement.
The suspect was apprehended by police driving northbound on the I-95 highway after crossing into Martin County, roughly 61km (38 miles) from Trump’s golf course.
Who is Ryan Routh?
Image source, From Martin County Sheriff Office
Ryan Routh, in picture released Monday by sheriff’s office
BBC Verify has found social media profiles matching Mr Routh’s name. They indicate that Routh called for foreign fighters to go to Ukraine to battle against Russian forces.
There are also pro-Palestinian, pro-Taiwan and anti-China messages on his profile, including allegations about Chinese “biological warfare” and references to the Covid-19 virus as an “attack”.
Mr Routh, who had no military experience, told the New York Times in 2023 he had travelled to Ukraine immediately after Russia’s invasion in 2022 to find military recruits among Afghan soldiers who had fled the Taliban.
He seems to have been involved in recruitment efforts as recently as this summer, writing on Facebook in July: “Soldiers, please do not call me. We are still trying to get Ukraine to accept Afghan soldiers and hope to have some answers in the coming months… please have patience.”
Early reporting suggests Mr Routh had a criminal record. According to CBS sources, Ryan Routh was charged and convicted of numerous felony offences in Guilford County in North Carolina between 2002 and 2010.
The offences include including carrying a concealed weapon, resisting arrest by a police officer, driving with a revoked licence, possession of stolen property and hit and run with a motor vehicle.
Questioned by a judge in a West Palm Beach federal court on Monday, Routh said he had “zero funds” in his bank account.
He said that he had a monthly income of around $3,000 (£2,300). His only assets, he told the court, are two trucks in Hawaii worth about $1,000 (£760) each.
Image source, Getty Images
Officials shared images of the suspect’s belongings – what appear to be bags hanging from a fence next to a rifle
What happened to Trump?
Trump was not injured during the incident.
Shortly after the incident was confirmed by his campaign team, the Republican issued a statement to his fundraising list, which read: “There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumours start spiralling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL”.
Trump gave his account to Fox News anchor Sean Hannity, who retold the episode on air on Sunday.
“They were on the fifth hole, they were about to go up to putt,” Mr Hannity said.
The former president heard “pop pop, pop pop”, he said. “Within seconds, the Secret Service pounced on the president [and] covered him.”
He added that a steel-reinforced vehicle soon whisked Trump away to safety.
What has the political reaction been after the second attempted assassination?
Trump supporters have gathered around the former president’s residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, after the incident, as well as around the golf club where the investigation is under way.
Some of them have been pictured wearing MAGA (Make America Great Again) caps, and waving banners, posters and American flags that say “America first”.
The White House said President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris, who is Trump’s Democratic opponent in the presidential race, had been briefed about the incident.
“I am deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today,” Harris said in a statement.
Leaders from the bipartisan congressional task force set up to investigate the 13 July assassination attempt in Pennsylvania said they were thankful the former president was not harmed, “but remain deeply concerned”.
The task force has requested a briefing with the Secret Service.
What happens next?
Routh appeared in court for a hearing that lasted less than 10 minutes on Monday.
It was not an arraignment – meaning he did not enter a plea – but the charges against him were read in court. They included possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obstructed serial number.
He will appear in court again next Monday.
Palm Beach County’s state attorney, Dave Aronberg, told US media that Mr Routh could face “a lot of time in prison”. The charges made against him carry a maximum term of 20 years in jail.
Jeffrey Veltri from the FBI Miami Field Office said on Sunday that the bureau was leading investigations alongside other law enforcement agencies.
“We’ve deployed a number of resources, including investigative teams, crisis response team members, bomb technicians and evidence response team members,” Veltri said, adding that the “full resources of the FBI” alongside the US Secret Service, the Palm Beach Sheriff’s office and Martin County Sheriff’s office were mobilised.
Secret Service’s Rafael Barros told reporters on Sunday measures had been taken since the previous assassination attempt and “the threat level is high”.
Watch: Ros Atkins on…the apparent Trump assassination attempt
North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher makes sense of the race for the White House in his weekly US Election Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here. Those outside the UK can sign up here.
