The suspect accused of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump earlier this month has been indicted.
A federal grand jury in Miami returned an indictment Tuesday against suspect Ryan Routh, who is accused of attempting to kill Trump at his Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15.
“Violence targeting public officials endangers everything our country stands for, and the Department of Justice will use every available tool to hold Ryan Routh accountable for the attempted assassination of former President Trump charged in the indictment,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a release following the indictment.Â
FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT SUSPECT ROUTH NOT TO BE RELEASED
He added, “The Justice Department will not tolerate violence that strikes at the heart of our democracy, and we will find and hold accountable those who perpetrate it. This must stop.”
Routh is accused of hiding out on the Trump golf course and attempting to fire a rifle at the former president. It is the second attempt on Trump’s life this year.
He is being charged with attempted assassination of a presidential candidate.
On Monday, Magistrate Judge Ryon McCabe granted the government’s request to detain Routh pending the resolution of charges during a court hearing in Florida. Routh, who was clad in a blue prison jumpsuit and shackled by his hands and feet, appeared engaged and paid attention during the hearing.Â
Prior to the court proceeding, the Justice Department asked the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida to keep Routh in pretrial detention. McCabe said federal prosecutors met their burden and the weight of the evidence was strong.
“This alleged attempted assassination of the former President at his golf course was a direct attack on our democracy. Political violence has no place in this country — not then, not now, not ever,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
She added, “The charges today reflect the Department’s continued resolve to deploy every available resource to ensure public officials remain safe and to hold accountable those who target public officials to the fullest extent of the law.”
Between 1980 and 2010, Routh had more than a hundred interactions with law enforcement, accruing charges ranging from writing bad checks to felony firearms possession, possession of a stolen vehicle and multiple counts of possession of a weapon of mass destruction.
Fox News Digital’s Christina Coulter, Greg Norman, Louis Casiano and Jake Gibson contributed to this report.
