Trump assassination attempt: Suspect Ryan Routh played 'cat and mouse' with police, expert says

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A former FBI agent told Fox News Digital that there was "a clear mental illness component" that motivated would-be assassin Ryan Routh to take aim at former President Donald Trump on Sept. 15.

Before he was charged with two gun-related crimes in a Florida court on Monday, Routh, 58, had more than a hundred interactions with police between the 1980s and 2010.

His prior charges range from writing bad checks to felony firearms possession, possession of a stolen vehicle and multiple counts of possession of a weapon of mass destruction in 2002 — specifically, a "binary explosive with a 10-in[ch] detonation cord and a blasting cap." 

Retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent Scott Duffey told Fox News Digital that Routh's frequent run-ins with police, combined with his social media persona, were indicative of "someone who is constantly trying to poke somebody and see what their response is going to be."

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Ryan W. Routh, suspected of attempting to assassinate Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach golf course, stands handcuffed after his arrest during a traffic stop near Palm City, Florida, on Sept. 15, 2024. (Martin County Sheriff's Office/Handout via REUTERS)

"It's not only a lengthy criminal arrest record, but for several decades," Duffey said. "You have this escalation of violent acts, and then, of course, other contacts with police like driving without a license. Those are not violent acts, but they are constant contacts with police. That tells me that over the past few decades, whatever was going through his head, he wanted to be in contact with law enforcement."

Duffey's assessment meshes with the experience of local police in Guilford County, North Carolina, where Routh previously lived. Retired Greensboro Police Department Officer Eric Rasecke told Fox News Digital that it "would not be uncommon to have [Routh] cited many times in a week."

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"Routh's attitude was that he was above everybody. He could do what he wanted," Rasecke said. "It didn't matter. He was pretty entitled. … He ran his mouth quite a bit about how he could get off and how he owned a successful business and nobody could do anything to him and [how] he knew everybody in Greensboro."

In 2002, Routh barricaded himself inside his roofing business, United Roofing, with a semi-automatic rifle after he was pulled over. The incident lasted approximately three hours before Routh surrendered and was apprehended without incident, The Greensboro News & Record reported at the time.

In addition to a divorce and multiple civil judgments after contractors and individuals sued his roofing company, according to NBC News, Routh also had several run-ins with police in 2003, including a moving violation on the road. 

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General views of gaps in vegetation by the fence between holes 5 and 6 at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. These holes are close to where a gun was found, believed to belong to Ryan Routh in a suspected attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump. (Mega for Fox News Digital)

Duffey suggested that Routh may have had a sentencing deferral due to mental health concerns, possibly undergoing an intensive treatment program in lieu of prosecution.

"It tells me that something took place as a result of that incident [where Routh barricaded himself in 2002], whether it be a mental breakdown, something was going on inside his head," Duffey said. "It'd be interesting to see if he surrendered, if there was in fact some sort of weapon and why was he out and about a year later?"

"It's telling me that there is a mental health component to this, that he's someone that has had quite a bit of history with contacts with police," Duffey continued. "For example, the barricaded gun situation, the driving without a license – was he purposely trying to do a cat and mouse game with law enforcement?"

Former Presidend Donald Trump assassination attempt suspect Ryan Routh was seen being taken into custody on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024 in bodycam footage released Monday. (Martin County Sheriff's Office )

Routh made a number of political posts on X. Before Sunday's assassination attempt, he called Trump a "buffoon," an "idiot" and a "fool," writing that he had supported Trump in 2016 but came to view that decision as a "a terrible mistake."

Routh wrote that Iran should feel "free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment."

He also wrote that he would be willing to "volunteer to fight and die" to assist Ukrainian troops on the front lines. 

Routh is a pro-Ukraine activist who has spent time in the Eastern European country volunteering to raise more support for the nation's military efforts and even sought Afghan veterans who fled from the Taliban to fight in the war, a New York Times report noted.

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Court sketch depicting Ryan Routh in Federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. Routh is facing charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. Routh is suspected of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump. (Lothar Speer)

"That's free speech, right, to spout off things that either make sense or don't make sense. [But] you see a lot of [social media] ramblings in a lot of these previous mass shooter incidents," Duffey told Fox News Digital. 

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"This is an individual that is not unique," Duffey continued. "I would hope... post some sort of conviction, he will then have a sit-down and be able to kind of invite law enforcement inside his head and say 'Hey, this is what's been going on, this is what triggered me. There are other people like me.' [Then] law enforcement and mental health [professionals] can take a lesson from [that] and try to do something to pay a little more attention to something."

Routh's attorney could not be reached for comment.

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