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A suspected gunman is now in custody after Secret Service agents foiled what appears to be a second assassination attempt on Donald Trump in the space of just two months.
Ryan Wesley Routh was identified by three law enforcement officials who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to speak openly about the incident.
He was allegedly armed with a powerful AK-47 assault rifle and aimed it through the bushes at Trump National Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, when the former president was playing a round of golf on Sunday.
He was around 300 to 500 yards away from Trump at the time.
West Palm Beach Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said in a press conference that, at around 1.30pm, Secret Service agents had spotted the butt of the gun through the fence and fired shots toward Routh.
It is not clear if the accused gunman opened fire.
Routh reportedly fled the scene, with a witness taking a photo and noting the license plate of Routh’s black Nissan SUV, authorities said.
Officers from the Martin County Sheriff’s office in Florida, based near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, tracked down the vehicle on the I-95 and captured the suspect.
The suspect has been taken into custody and is being held at the local county jail.
The motive for the alleged attack also remains unclear but the FBI is treating it as an “attempted assassination,” the bureau said in a statement.
When he fled, the alleged gunman left several items behind at the golf club fence: an AK-47 with a scope, two backpacks with ceramic tile inside and a GoPro video camera which he allegedly aimed to use to film the incident.
The incident comes just two months after Trump survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, back on July 13.
Back then, gunman Thomas Crooks opened fire on the former president with an AR-style rifle from a rooftop of a nearby building.
A bullet struck Trump in the ear while one rallygoer was killed before Crooks was shot dead by Secret Service snipers.
Since that shooting, the Secret Service has faced pointed questions about the extent and competency of security details protecting the former president and other political figures.
