A MAN charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump at his Florida golf course during last year’s presidential campaign was convicted by a federal jury on all counts on Tuesday.
Ryan Routh, 59, of Hawaii, appeared to try to stab himself in the neck with a pen after the guilty verdict was read in court but was restrained by marshals, US media said.
Routh was handcuffed and removed from the courtroom. He did not appear to be injured when he was brought back in a short time later.
Routh was convicted of attempted assassination of a presidential candidate, assaulting a federal officer and firearms offences after a 12-day trial during which he represented himself.
He faces a possible sentence of life in prison for attempting to kill Trump. Sentencing was set for Dec 18.
Trump congratulated Attorney General Pam Bondi and Justice Department prosecutors for securing the conviction.
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“This was an evil man with an evil intention, and they caught him,” the US president said in a post on Truth Social.
Bondi said the guilty verdict “illustrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to punishing those who engage in political violence.”
“This attempted assassination was not only an attack on our president, but an affront to our very nation itself,” Bondi said in a statement.
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‘I am so sorry I failed you’
Routh was arrested on Sep 15, 2024 after a Secret Service agent saw the barrel of a rifle poking from bushes on the perimeter of the West Palm Beach golf course where Trump was playing a round.
The agent opened fire and Routh, who fled in a vehicle, was arrested shortly after.
A loaded AK-style rifle, equipped with a scope and a magazine containing additional rounds of ammunition, was recovered from his hiding place.
During the trial, a witness testified that Routh had dropped off a box at his residence that included a handwritten letter which stated: “Dear World. This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, but I am so sorry I failed you.”
Acting as his own lawyer at his trial in Fort Pierce, Florida, Routh made rambling remarks which tried the patience of District Judge Aileen Cannon, who cut short his opening statement.
Routh has a fixation on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and reportedly traveled to Kyiv in an effort to join foreign volunteer units before being rejected due to his age and lack of experience.
Trump was also the target of an assassination attempt on July 13, 2024, when Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several shots during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. One of them grazed Trump’s right ear.
Crooks was shot dead by a Secret Service sniper. AFP
