Ryan Routh has been convicted of trying to assassinate former U.S President Donald Trump while he was golfing in Florida in September last year.
A jury found the 59 year old guilty on all counts, including the attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate along with several firearm related offences.
The attack took place on 15 September 2024, as Trump, then running for president, played golf at his own course in West Palm Beach, located about 15 minutes from his Mar-a-Lago estate.
According to investigators, a Secret Service agent noticed the barrel of a rifle sticking out from bushes and immediately fired at the suspect, later identified as Routh, who fled the area but was arrested shortly afterward.
Following the verdict, reports from CBS News, a partner of the BBC in the U.S., revealed that Routh tried to stab himself with a pen before being stopped by U.S. Marshals.
In a post shared on social media right after the court’s decision, Trump expressed gratitude to law enforcement officers and to a witness whose tip helped secure Routh’s arrest.
