The man accused of plotting to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf course was indicted on three additional charges on Tuesday, including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, according to the US Department of Justice.
Ryan Routh, 58, was arrested on September 15 after Secret Service agents noticed him with a gun near the course where Trump was playing. He had already been charged with two gun-related offenses in connection with the incident. The new indictment was issued by a grand jury in Miami, Florida, the Justice Department stated.
Court documents revealed that the case was randomly assigned to Federal Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who halted criminal proceedings against the former president regarding the retention of top-secret documents at his private residence. The new charges against Routh include attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime, and assault on a federal officer, identified as a Secret Service agent.
A Secret Service agent spotted Routh's gun protruding from bushes as he scouted ahead during Trump's golf game. The agent fired at the suspect, who fled but was later apprehended. A federal judge ruled on Monday that Routh should remain in custody.
FBI analysis of Routh's phone indicated he had been in Florida since August 18, with his devices located multiple times between that date and September 15 near Trump's golf course and his Mar-a-Lago residence. Before being spotted by the Secret Service agent, Routh had spent nearly 12 hours in the vicinity of the club, according to his phone location data.
This summer saw the second assassination attempt on Trump. The first occurred on July 13 at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a gunman opened fire, killing one person and wounding Trump in the ear. The candidate was otherwise unharmed, and the gunman was killed at the scene and is not believed to be connected with Routh's alleged plot.
Trump had previously criticized the Department of Justice and FBI for "mishandling and downplaying" the golf course incident. In a written statement released this week, he called the charges against the "maniac assassin" a "slap on the wrist," possibly prepared before it was known that additional felony counts were a possibility.
In a statement filled with falsehoods and baseless conspiracy theories about his various criminal cases, Trump called for the Routh case to be handed to state authorities in Florida, which is governed by hard-right Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. DeSantis announced earlier this month that the state will conduct its own investigation and seek tougher charges.
