US media has identified Ryan Wesley Routh as the man suspected of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump. Routh, 58, was arrested after a dramatic confrontation with US Secret Service agents who fired at him near Trump’s Florida golf course, where the former president was playing on Sunday.
Reports indicate that Routh, who had been hiding in the bushes and armed with an AK-47 style rifle, fled in a black car but was later apprehended by authorities. CNN and CBS have revealed that Routh, a Hawaii-based affordable housing builder, has a lengthy arrest record and was known for his politically charged social media posts, often criticizing Trump.
Routh was also vocal in his support for Ukraine’s resistance against Russia’s invasion. In a March 2022 post, he expressed his willingness to travel to Krakow and volunteer in the fight, stating, “I AM WILLING TO FLY TO KRAKOW AND GO TO THE BORDER OF UKRAINE TO VOLUNTEER AND FIGHT AND DIE… Can I be the example We must win,” as reported by the New York Times.
AFP interviewed Routh in Kyiv in April 2022, where he was participating in a demonstration supporting Ukrainians in Mariupol. He described Russian President Vladimir Putin as a terrorist and urged global support for Ukraine.
As the US continues to back Ukraine, the political landscape is set to shift in January, with President Joe Biden’s successor being either Vice President Kamala Harris, who has pledged to continue Biden’s Ukraine policies, or Donald Trump, who has been non-committal about his stance on the conflict in recent debates.
