Trump Shooting Suspect Ryan Wesley Routh: What We Know

Law enforcement officials say the man suspected of shooting Donald Trump who was arrested in Martin County is Ryan Wesley Routh.

Records show that Routh, 58, lived in North Carolina for most of his life before moving in 2018 to Kaaawa, Hawaii, where he and his son operated a shed-building business, according to an archived version of the company's webpage.

Routh frequently posted on social media about the war in Ukraine and had a website where he sought to raise money and recruit volunteers to travel to kyiv to join the fight against the Russian invasion.

In June 2020, he posted a message on X addressed to then-President Trump saying he would be re-elected if he issued an executive order directing the Justice Department to pursue police misconduct.

That year, he also posted a message of support for the Democratic presidential campaign of Tulsi Gabbard, then a U.S. representative from Hawaii, who has since left the party and supported Trump.

However, in recent years, his posts suggest he has turned away from Trump and expressed support for President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

In July, after the assassination attempt on Trump in Pennsylvania, Routh urged Biden and Harris to visit those injured in the shooting at the hospital and attend the funeral of a former fire chief killed at the rally.

Voter records show he registered as an unaffiliated voter in North Carolina in 2012, and most recently voted in person in the state's March 2024 Democratic primary.

Federal campaign finance records show Routh has made 19 small political donations totaling $140 since 2019 using his Hawaii address to ActBlue, a political action committee that supports Democratic candidates.

Records show that while living in Greensboro, North Carolina, Routh had numerous run-ins with law enforcement. He was convicted in 2002 of possessing a weapon of mass destruction, according to online records from the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.