Trump shooter was once arrested for having 'weapons of mass destruction', wished ex-prez was 'gone'

The suspected shooter who was arrested for aiming an AK-47 rifle barrel towards the United States former president and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has a long criminal record which revealed the crimes committed by him in the past.

As per North Carolina Department of Adult Correction online records, gunman Ryan Wesley Routh was convicted of possessing a weapon of mass destruction in the year 2002.

Also Read:Who is Ryan Wesley Routh, the man who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump

He was 36 years old when he was arrested by the police after a three-hour standoff. The shooter was seen wielding a firearm as he sped away from a traffic stop and hid himself inside a local roofing business in Greensboro,North Carolina.

Shooter took to social media to wish Trump was 'gone'

In June 2020, the shooter wrote on social media that he had voted for Trump in 2016 but he wished the then-president would be 'different and better' in comparison to how he was as a candidate.

"We all were greatly disappointed and it seems you are getting worse and devolving; are you retarded," wrote Routh on the social media platform at the time. "I will be glad when you gone (sic)," he added.

The guy who just tried to take Trump's life in Florida has been identified as Ryan Wesley Routh, a Trump hater who has posted tweets INSULTING Trump

One of his tweets said, "I will be glad when you gone" pic.twitter.com/V5EPlfT3MX

The rap sheet of Routh in North Carolina included 2002 "weapon law violations" and "terrorist threats", as per the public records. Roth is a registered Democrat and a construction worker.

Routh's Ukraine connection

After Routh was arrested for his alleged assassination attempt on Trump, his nearly two-minute clip from 2022 resurfaced on social media where he was interviewed by News Week Romania and spoke about how he helped recruit fighters for Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia.

"This is definitely evil against good," said Routh, in the video.

The posts by Ryan Routh on X also showed that Ukraine was an important cause to him. In two posts in August 2023, he addressed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

pic.twitter.com/0w5Dz1HFgF
This is Donald Trump assassination attempt suspect Ryan Wesley Routh, he was interviewed by Newsweek Romania in 2022.

He’s a zealot for Ukraine war because he’s been fully propagandized by corporate media to support the war.

He has ZERO idea what the…

As per one post, Routh was in Kyiv and wished to set up a tent city for foreigners in a local park which would appeal to more people from abroad to “raise great support and equipment”.

In the other post, Zelensky appealed to Congress to place all American military members on paid leave “so they can fight as civilians in Ukraine”.

Watch:Trump Shooting Attempt: Donald Trump safe after new assassination attempt in Florida

In another post from December, the gunman also expressed concern for violent civil unrest in Haiti.

On Sunday (Sep 15), Trump was golfing at his golf course when the gunman reportedly opened fire "in his vicinity" with an AK-47-style rifle and was eventually caught by Secret Service agents.

(With inputs from agencies)