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Did Ryan Routh have ‘inside information’ on Donald Trump's schedule? Ex-FBI leader weighs in on ‘scary’ possibility
A former FBI assistant director said “there are only three possible answers” to how Ryan Routh knew the exact details of Donald Trump's whereabouts.
A former FBI assistant director has suggested that Donald Trump’s would-be assassin, Ryan Wesley Routh, may have had inside information on the former president’s movements. Chris Swecker told Newsweek that law enforcement will have to find out how the suspect knew the exact details of when Trump had planned to play golf at a Florida resort.
Trump was golfing at Trump National Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday, September 15, when shots were fired at Routh, who was hidingwith an AK-47, a GoPro camera and other items before what could have been an assassination attempt on Trump, authorities said. Although the Secret Service fired at Routh, he was not hit. Routh fled in a car, and was arrested in a traffic stop on I-95.
The FBI has said that it wasjoining the investigation into the shooting.
‘There are only three possible answers’
Swecker retired from the Bureau as assistant director with responsibility over all FBI criminal investigations. He said that Routh seemed to be a "wingnut" who hated authority.
"The biggest question to answer is: 'How did the would-be assassin know to be at that location at that time?'" Swecker said. "There are only three possible answers: He guessed and got very lucky; he conducted surveillance on Trump and followed him to the golf course or he had inside information about Trump's schedule.”
"The last answer is scary and has implications that another person was involved,” he added.
Swecker retired from the FBI in 2006. At present, he is an attorney based in Charlotte, North Carolina. In the aftermath of the incident, Swecker said that some of the rhetoric on Trump must be toned down.
“There is little doubt that the demonization of Trump is resonating with the fringe elements who are mentally unstable and highly impressionable, so it may be time to tone it down a bit," he said.
Swecker added that Routh had been involved in some "strange quests," for instance, he tried to get Afghan fighters into Ukraine to fight the Russians. "We know this suspect has posted about Trump being a danger to democracy and he has been active on some strange quests: visiting Ukraine to round up Afghan fighters so motive is coming into focus—he is a wing nut who dislikes authority, based on his arrest record for resisting arrest in a two-hour standoff," Swecker said.
Swecker was referring to a 2002 incident when Routh was stopped by cops while driving without a valid licence. He subsequently sped off before barricading himself inside his own roofing company for three hours. He eventually surrendered. At the time, Routh was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, resisting a police officer and driving without a valid licence among other charges.
