Police identify man accused of attacking Trump in Palm Beach

Police have identified a suspected assassin who is believed to have plotted an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Palm Beach County on Sunday afternoon.

The Republican presidential candidate was unharmed in the shooting. He was playing golf at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach. The US Secret Service took him to his Mar-a-Lago estate.

The FBI, the agency leading the investigation into the “apparent” attempted murder, has not yet released the suspect's identity. Law enforcement sources told ABC News and the Associated Press that the suspect is Ryan Wesley Routh. CNN reported that Routh, 58, of Kaawa, Hawaii, has a criminal record for minor arrests. Records show he also lived in Greensboro, North Carolina.

A user named Routh on X wrote to Trump: “Although you were my choice in 2016, I and the world hoped that President Trump would be different and better than the candidate, but we have all been greatly disappointed and it seems that you are getting worse and regressing; are [pejorative term]; I'll be glad when you're gone.”

Routh was very active on social media. He was a staunch supporter of Ukraine and wanted Americans to come forward to fight the Russians.

“I AM READY TO FLY TO KRAKOW AND GO TO THE BORDER OF UKRAINE TO VOLUNTEER, FIGHT AND DIE… Can I be the example? We must win,” Routh wrote on X.

Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder said officers arrested him near Palm City after Palm Beach County officers issued a “very urgent” BOLO (Benefits of Loot) alert on a black Nissan SUV that a witness saw drive away from the scene. Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said the shooter left behind a rifle with a scope, two backpacks and a GoPro camera.

The apparent assassination attempt came about two months after U.S. intelligence officials killed a man at a rally in Pennsylvania who had also fired a rifle when Trump was assassinated. The bullet grazed Trump's ear.

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Local 10 News partner WPTV contributed to this report.