Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Sunday that the state would conduct a separate investigation into how the second shooter was able to get within 500 yards of former President Trump.
While the former president was playing at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. Secret Service agents opened fire on Ryan Wesley Routh, who was reportedly carrying a rifle.
Authorities said Routh was carrying a GoPro camera and two backpacks and is accused of pointing the muzzle of a rifle at a chain link fence about 300 to 500 yards away from the former president.
Fox News reporter Lucas Tomlinson confirmed that investigators opened fire when they saw Routh brandishing a weapon, after which he fled the scene in a black Nissan but was quickly arrested, authorities said.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the state will conduct its own investigation into the second assassination attempt on former President Trump that occurred on Sunday. (Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Trump was on the fifth hole of the course when shots rang out and security surrounded him and escorted him to the safety of the clubhouse — the second assassination attempt against Trump in just two months.
As more information emerges about what is being investigated as an assassination attempt on President Trump, Governor DeSantis announced that the State of Florida will conduct its own investigation into what happened at Trump International Golf Club.
“The public has a right to know the truth about the attempted assassin and how he managed to get within 500 yards of a former president and current Republican candidate,” DeSantis said in a post on X.
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On Sunday, a gunman came within 500 yards of former President Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. (AP/Jay C. Hong)
It was the second time in 64 days that a gunman came within close proximity of the president.
On July 13, suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, from the roof of a building about 150 yards from the stage.
Crooks fired eight bullets, one of which grazed Trump's ear – any movement to the left or right could have caused serious brain damage or even death.
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On Sunday, a man attempted to assassinate President Trump on a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The investigation into how Crooks was able to get onto the top floor of an unoccupied building so close to Trump's home is being conducted by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including Reps. Mike Kelly (R-Pennsylvania) and Jason Crow (D-Colo.).
The two lawmakers issued a statement on Sunday saying they had requested a report from the Secret Service about the events leading up to the assassination attempt on President Trump, this time in West Palm Beach.
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“While we are grateful that the former president was not harmed, we remain deeply concerned about political violence and condemn violence in all its forms,” they wrote in the statement.
Fox News Digital's Stephanie Price contributed to this report.
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