American media have revealed the name of the suspect in the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump. It turned out to be 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routt from North Carolina, known for his active support of Ukraine and participation in the recruitment of foreign citizens to serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The incident occurred during Trump's golf game on a course in West Palm Beach, when the Secret Service noticed Routt sticking the barrel of a machine gun through a fence and aiming at the politician.

According to investigators, Routt managed to flee the scene, but he was quickly detained thanks to eyewitness accounts. He was not carrying a weapon when he was arrested, but a cache was later found in the bushes near the golf course, containing an assault rifle with a telescopic sight, two backpacks, and a GoPro camera. The Secret Service noted that the cache was located just two holes from where Trump was playing.

Ryan Wesley Routh, a vocal supporter of Ukraine, has previously traveled to Kyiv to recruit mercenaries to fight against Russia. He has publicly announced his mission in Ukraine in 2022 on social media, even calling for American troops to be “taken on leave” so they could fight as civilians. The incident highlights Routh’s radical views and his disillusionment with Donald Trump, whom he voted for in 2016 but later defected to the Democratic Party.

Information about Routt, as published on his LinkedIn profile, indicates that he graduated from North Carolina A&M University and moved to Hawaii in 2018. However, Routt could not explain his presence in Florida at the time of the incident.