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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Ryan Wesley Routh, the man accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump over the weekend at his Florida golf club, was charged with two gun-related counts in federal court on Monday morning.

Routh, 58, stood before Magistrate Judge Ryon M. McCabe at the federal courthouse in West Plam Beach, shackled and wearing a dark prison uniform where he was charged with possession of a firearm while a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

It arrives just one day after law enforcement officials identified Routh as the man who aimed an AK-47-style assault rifle at the former president at Trump National Golf Club while Trump was playing a round of golf.

Possession of a firearm while a convicted felon carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number carries a maximum sentencing of five years in prison with a $250,000 fine.

Judge McCabe has set a detention hearing for September 23 and an arraignment for September 30.

Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was charged with (Martin County Sheriff’s Office)

Law enforcement officials say Routh, the owner of United Roofing, was hiding in bushes, just a few hundred yards away from the former president, when a Secret Service agent spotted the rifle poking through a fence.

The agent began to shoot toward the suspect, causing him to flee the scene in a vehicle. The gunman left behind a digital camera, a loaded semi-automatic-style rifle with a scope and a plastic bag containing food.

Local law enforcement officials tracked down the Nissan SUV Routh fled in, thanks to a witness who took a photo of the license plate, and apprehended Routh on I-95. He was then taken into custody.

It is unclear what the motive of the attack may have been but the Federal Bureau of Investigation is treating it as an “attempted assassination.”

According to the criminal complaint, the serial number on the semi-automatic-style rifle, determined to be an SKS-style rifle, was obliterated and “unreadable”.

Law enforcement officials indicated that the type of rifle found is not manufactured in Florida and have reason to believe it was brought across state lines or internationally.

Police officers stand outside a federal building in Palm Beach, Florida head of Ryan Wesley Routh’s first appearance (REUTERS)

Routh has a prior criminal record dating back to at least 2002 when he was convicted of possession of a weapon of mass death and destruction in Greensboro, North Carolina.

At the time, Routh was pulled over and allegedly putting his hand on a firearm and then drove off to barricade himself in the premises of a business. The incident triggered a three-hour stand-off, according to a review of state court records.

In 2010, Routh was convicted on multiple counts of possession of stolen goods and sentenced to probation. Further details of the charges are unclear.

Tina Cooper, a former employee of Routh’s told The Independent she recalls Routh’s stand-off with police in 2002, claiming her former boss was known for doing “stupid s***”.

Cooper recalled that Routh “did some stupid s*** down here, and... got away with some of it,” but that he was a “good guy” who did “what he could” for other people.

The former employee did not recall Routh being overly political but posts on his now-suspended social media profiles indicate he once supported Trump but became critical of the former president in recent years.

Oran Routh, the son of the suspected gunman, told the Daily Mail, that his father did not like Trump but that he did think his father was a violent person.

Ryan Wesley Routh, pictured in an undated selfie, will be arraigned in two weeks on the charges brought by federal prosectuors (via REUTERS)

During Monday’s court hearing, Judge McCabe said Routh could not afford his own attorney because he had virtually no savings.

Prosecutors told Judge McCabe they would be seeking pre-trial detention for Routh, indicating he was a flight risk and danger to the community.

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