Ex-Neighbor Says Alleged Shooter Had A 'Lot of Guns and Stuff' But Didn't Think He Would Target Trump

58-year-old Ryan Routh was arrested and charged with federal gun crimes on Sunday, September 15, for trying to allegedly assassinate former President and current Republican nominee, Donald Trump. Gunshots were fired at Trump's lavish golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. In the aftermath of the incident, Routh's former neighbor opened up about the same and expressed disbelief. 

The Greensboro, North Carolina, resident told FOX 8 WGHP anonymously that she had often found Routh a little weird but never imagined him to be an ace shooter. "Him, I mean, trying to shoot Trump. That’s a lot. I would have never guessed, and I would have sworn up and down, no, that’s not him," the woman exclaimed.

However, she did acknowledge that Routh was feared by some in the past. "I have seen the guns myself and all, and yeah, they had a lot of guns and stuff over there, and, yeah, a lot of people were afraid of him back in the day," according to HuffPost. The U.S. Secret Service agents located the shooter hiding in the bushes, armed with an AK-style assault rifle, according to ABC 25 WPBF News. 

If the charges are proven in court, Routh would face up to 15 to 20 years behind bars with no respite, considering the seriousness of the crime. The agencies responsible for nabbing the alleged criminal shared that he tried to escape the arrest in an SUV. Martin County Sheriff, William Snyder, remarked, "He never asked, ‘What is this about?’ Obviously, law enforcement with long rifles, blue lights, a lot going on. He never questioned it." 

Routh was a Trump supporter in 2016 but endorsed Tulsi Gabbard, a Democratic candidate, in 2020. Recent reports revealed that Routh waited to shoot the ex-POTUS for almost 12 hours, sitting in the bushes, NBC News reported; court papers disclosed that he camped in the woods with a loaded rifle.

The prompt action on Sunday scattered doubts about the steps taken by the Secret Service to amp up their efforts to protect the Republican nominee. Previously, the businessman-turned-politician survived a spray of bullets during an open rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. This counts as the second attempt to assassinate the politician as presidential elections draw near.

In a self-published book titled, Ukraine’s Unwinnable War: The Fatal Flaw of Democracy, World Abandonment and the Global Citizen-Taiwan, Afghanistan, North Korea and the End of Humanity, Routh cited Trump's foreign policies to explain why his allegiance to him dissolved. "[Trump] ended up being brainless, but I am man enough to say that I misjudged and made a terrible mistake and Iran I apologize. You are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment and the dismantling of the deal," he wrote.