Trump safe after second apparent assassination attempt, suspect in custody

Former United States President Donald Trump said he is “safe and well” after what authorities said appeared to be a second assassination attempt on the Republican candidate. The FBI said it is investigating “what appears to be an attempted assassination” of Trump on Sunday after the Secret Service said it opened fire on a gunman at the former president’s golf resort in Florida. “FEAR NOT! I am safe and well, and no one was hurt. Thank God!” Trump said in a statement on his fundraising website. At a joint news conference involving the FBI, Secret Service and local officials, authorities said that a Secret Service agent, who was one hole ahead of Trump on the golf course, spotted a person with a firearm located near the boundary of the resort and fired in his direction. Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said the suspect was 400 to 500 yards (365 to 457 metres) from Trump and it appeared he sought to film himself. The suspect fled the wooded area in a black vehicle, but was quickly located and detained by law enforcement agencies, according to officials. A backpack, GoPro camera, firearm scope and “AK-47-style rifle” were recovered from the scene, officials said. The New York Times and Fox News named the suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, citing unnamed law enforcement officials. The White House said that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, had both been briefed and would be kept updated on the investigation. Al Jazeera’s Dmitry Medvedenko reports. For further insights, we are joined by Al Jazeera’s Patty Culhane in Washington, DC. To discuss the potential impact of the latest assassination attempt on the former president's life on the upcoming election, we are joined by James Davis, a Republican strategist and founder of Touchdown Strategies, live from Washington, DC. Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/AJSubscribe Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/AJEnglish Find us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/ Check out our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/ Download AJE Mobile App: https://aje.io/AJEMobile #UnitedStates #DonaldTrump #Trump #TrumpAssassinationAttempt2 #TrumpAssassinationAttempt #Trump2024 #FBI #SecretService #RyanWesleyRouth #Florida #WestPalmBeach #MarALago #USElection2024 #JoeBiden #KamalaHarris #TrumpGolfResort