Officials confirm they are investigating the attempted shooting of Donald Trump as an assassination attempt. Markenzy LaPointe from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida also confirmed the two federal firearm charges Ryan Routh faces at this point.
LaPointe said the Secret Service found an SKS a Soviet-era rifle, backpack, and video camera where Routh was staked out in the area along the tree line of the Trump golf course yesterday.
At the press briefing, the FBI also confirmed Routh was at the scene for 12 hours before the event unfolded, and the investigation is still in its infancy.
Acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said his agency already had extra security in place after Trump’s first assassination attempt in Pennsylvania in July. Rowe said Routh was unable to get a single shot off and he praised the actions of his team