On Sunday afternoon, at approximately 2 PM, some gunshots were heard near the Trump International Golf Club, in Florida, where Donald Trump was playing.
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung quickly released a statement, “President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity.” Cheung added that the former president was never in any danger and no further details were disclosed at that time. The Secret Service, along with the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, immediately started an investigation and the Trump International Golf Club was locked down, according to a source familiar with the details. The suspect has now been identified as Ryan Wesley Routh.
Subsequently it was revealed that a person has been detained in connection with the incident. As more details come in, the Associated Press reports that Secret Service agents opened fire at an armed person citing sources who said that a suspect, described as a “person of interest,” attempted to flee in an SUV but was later stopped. Meanwhile, police found near Donald Trump’s golf course a backpack, an AK-47 semi automatic weapon and a Go-Pro camera.
The initial reports maintained that the gunfire outside the West Palm Beach club had nothing to do with Trump but was reportedly a shootout between two people who exchanged gunfire with each other. This was later corrected as more details were gathered.
At present, Federal authorities are investigating the incident as an “attempted assassination,” a potential second attempt on the former president’s life in roughly two months.
The former president is in the Palm Beach area of Florida where he has two properties and was playing golf at the time of the incident.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have been briefed on the security incident involving Trump and they are both “relieved to know that he is safe,” according to the White House.
“I have been briefed on reports of gunshots fired near former President Trump and his property in Florida, and I am glad he is safe. Violence has no place in America,” Harris wrote on the social media platform X.
