Trump attempted assassination suspect Ryan Routh to appear in court

By Andrew Goudsward

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) - The man accused of hiding out with a gun near Donald Trump's Florida golf course in an apparent attempt to assassinate the former U.S. president is due in court on Monday, where prosecutors will argue to keep him in jail until his trial.

Ryan Routh, 58, has been charged with two gun crimes after he allegedly pointed a rifle through the tree line on Sept. 15 while the Republican presidential candidate was playing golf at his course in West Palm Beach, according to a criminal complaint. He has not yet entered a plea.

U.S. prosecutors may reveal new details about the investigation at the hearing, scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT), as they argue that Routh poses a danger to public safety and must remain detained pending trial.

Routh has been charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. More charges could follow.

A U.S. Secret Service agent spotted the weapon and fired in Routh's direction, causing the suspect to flee, according to the complaint. Routh was later arrested along a Florida highway. U.S. officials have said Routh did not fire a shot during the encounter at the golf course and did not have a line of sight to Trump, who was a few hundred yards (meters) away.

Authorities have not yet divulged a motive for the incident, which the FBI has said is being investigated as an apparent attempted assassination of Trump ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election.

It came about two months after another gunman wounded Trump on the ear during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. That gunman was shot and killed by the Secret Service. The pair of incidents revealed the agency's strains at a time of rising political threats and violence in the United States.

Routh, a struggling roofing contractor who most recently lived in Hawaii, had a criminal history. He was a vocal supporter of Ukraine who was interviewed about his quixotic effort to recruit Afghans to fight against Russia's invasion.

In a 2023 self-published book, Routh wrote that Iran was "free to assassinate Trump" for pulling the United States out of an international nuclear deal with Teheran during his presidency.

In December 2002, Routh was convicted in North Carolina of possessing a weapon of mass death and destruction. He was also convicted of possessing stolen goods in 2010, according to court records.

Cellphone data showed that Routh may have been waiting in the area for nearly 12 hours - from around 2 a.m. until about 1:30 p.m. - when the gun was spotted, according to the criminal complaint. Investigators found a loaded SKS-style rifle with a scope, a digital camera and a plastic bag with food at the scene, according to the complaint.

(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Scott Malone and Will Dunham)