Here's what Donald Trump was doing moments before shots rang out amid second assassination attempt
PALM BEACH, FLORIDA: Former President Donald Trump faced a second assassination attempt against him on Sunday, September 15. However, unlike last time, he was not in the middle of a campaign speech.
The GOP presidential nominee was enjoying a Sunday golf game at his Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. The Secret Service agents who accompanied Trump rushed him to safety after multiple gunshots were heard in the vicinity.
In an email after the incident, the ex-president assured his supporters that he was "safe and well."
What was Trump doing when gunshots were fired in the vicinity?
At the time, Trump was playing golf and was in between holes five and six, according to the information from an insider source, CNN reporter. His security team was located several holes away when a Secret Service agent spotted the shooter's rifle barrel sticking out of the golf course's fence.
President Trump's round of golf was not on any public schedule. How did the suspect know President Trump was golfing there today and near the 5th Hole?
— AJ Huber (@Huberton) September 15, 2024
2nd Trump's assassination attempt. Inside Job?
God Bless President Trump! pic.twitter.com/aaMMBPXdwM
According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, the agent who first saw the rifle stood a hole or two ahead of the MAGA spearhead, the suspect was 300 to 500 yards away from Trump.
The would-be Trump assassin, Ryan Wesley Routh, immediately fled the scene in his car but was soon captured by law enforcement officials.
It was only two months ago the real estate mogul narrowly escaped a potentially fatal bullet during his rally in Pennsylvania. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot dead on the spot by a Secret Service sniper after his gunfire injured Trump's ear.
JUST IN: The Trump assas*ination suspect was hiding in the bushes with an AK-47 with a scope, two backpacks, and a GoPro.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) September 15, 2024
The Secret Service agents were one hole ahead of Trump, scoping out the area when they noticed the suspect.
The FBI is now investigating the incident as an… pic.twitter.com/Makr1NLupZ
Steve Witkoff was with Trump when attack took place
Trump was enjoying his Sunday golf game with real estate investor Steve Witkoff, who is a top donor and ally of the 45th president.
Fox News host Sean Hannity said Trump and Witkof were on the fifth hole when the incident occurred.
"The way Steve described this, the way the president described it, they both had exactly the same story, which is that they heard pop pop, pop pop," Hannity remarked, adding that the Secret Service "pounced on the president, covered him."
Trump and Witkoff were instantly sent to a secure location in a golf cart and reportedly placed under lockdown.
The FBI started a probe into the second attack against Trump, deeming it "to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump."
The 58-year-old suspect from Hawaii, who carried an AK-47 rifle and a GoPro camera, did not say anything after being detained by the police, according to State Attorney for Palm Beach County, David Aronberg.
"He knew enough to stay silent," he said to CNN.
"He did not apparently speak to officers, he was calm. So, it looked like a person who has done this before, not necessarily this crime, but someone who has had repeated interactions with law enforcement," Aronberg added.
The suspect, Routh, is a critic of Trump and a supporter of Ukraine.
