Donald Trump recently received a surprising gift from Martin County Deputies, who had arrested the gunman responsible for a second assassination attempt on him.
On Sunday, 58-year-old suspect Ryan Wesley Routh was apprehended after a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle through the fence at Trump’s golf course near West Palm Beach, Florida, where the former president was playing.
Routh fled when the agent fired, but was later arrested after someone captured a photo of his license plate and reported it to authorities.
As a gesture, the Martin County Deputies signed the handcuffs used to arrest Routh and presented them to Trump. Following the arrest, Trump hosted the deputies at Mar-a-Lago, praising them, “That’s good-looking stuff right there,” reported WPTV. “That’s good-looking human beings.” He then shook hands with the deputies and Sheriff William Snyder before inviting them for lunch at Mar-a-Lago.
Sheriff Snyder later revealed what Trump told him during the meeting. Initially, investigators believed Routh was carrying an AK-47-style weapon, but it was later confirmed to be an SKS-style rifle. Snyder told WPTV that coordination with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office played a crucial role in apprehending Routh.
“I spoke with the president today, and he said he can rest easier knowing that someone who was planning to kill him, or try to kill him, is now in custody. That’s as rewarding as anything I’ve ever done,” Snyder said.
According to the deputies, Routh remained calm and cooperative during his arrest, despite being surrounded by several officers.
Routh now faces charges for possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number and for being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun. During a press conference on Tuesday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is competing against Trump in the Republican primary, suggested that Routh could face additional state-level charges.
