Photo: Alamy
The suspect in the second assassination attempt against President Donald Trump reportedly penned a letter about killing him months ago.
Ryan Routh, 58, is the lead suspect who was arrested on Sept. 15 after fleeing the Trump International Gold Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job,” Routh wrote in the letter, according to the Justice Department on Monday.
“Everyone across the globe from the youngest to the oldest know that Trump is unfit to be anything, much less a U.S. president,” he continued. “U.S. presidents must at bare minimum embody the moral fabric that is America, and be kind, caring and selfless and always stand for humanity. Trump fails to understand any of [that].”
Routh is scheduled to appear in court on Monday. He has been charged with possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Prosecutors are expected to share more information related to Routh’s alleged assassination attempt and argue for him to remain in jail until his trial.
Routh was reportedly pointing a rifle with a scope through the fence toward Trump from about 400 yards away. A Secret Service agent spotted him and fired toward Routh before he fled in his vehicle.
The suspected gunman was later apprehended by law enforcement along I-95.
The shooting attempt came just two months after Trump faced an assassination attempt during his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed his right ear and killed one person. Two other men were seriously injured.
Thomas Crooks, 20, was killed by sniper fire. The Secret Service has been strongly criticized for allowing Crooks to reach an elevated roof outside of Trump’s rally and firing eight shots before he was stopped.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned shortly after the event following pressure from lawmakers over security failures at Trump’s rally.