Former President Donald Trump was targeted in another assassination attempt on September 16th while golfing at his private golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. The suspect, Ryan Rouse, was spotted by the Secret Service before he was able to fire any shots at the former president. Rouse fled the scene in a black Nissan SUV and was stopped on I-95 50 miles north of the scene of the crime.
While Rouse is yet to make a statement explaining his motivation, authorities believe that the primary motive behind his attempted assassination appears to stem from his support of Ukraine. Rouse allegedly wanted to be a soldier for the Ukrainian army but was rejected due to his age. In response he focused on campaigning in hopes of rallying people to fight against Russia. Rouse also penned a letter describing how he would pay $15,000 to anyone who would kill Trump. Authorities found tweets on X (formerly known as Twitter) in which Rouse discussed wanting to organize protests against Trump’s decision to support Russia. These tweets were eventually taken down following the attempted assassination.
The 54 year-old’s current address is listed in Hawaii, but he has lived in South Carolina for most of his life where he owned a shed building company Camp Box Honolulu. “I haven’t known him to own guns or ever hurt anyone in any way, always tried to help his community in any and every way possible,” said Ryan Rouse’s son Oren Routh to CBS News. Rouse does have a prior arrest history having been charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, which means that the weapon was purchased illegally.
Rouse is currently charged with possessing a weapon of mass destruction, a hit and run, and resisting arrest. If convicted he could face up to 15 years in prison.
