Federal prosecutors revealed this week that Ryan Routh—the man accused of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump in September 2024—had sought to acquire anti-aircraft weapons from Ukraine just weeks before his failed attack at Trump’s Florida golf course.

Prosecutors allege that in August 2024, Routh tried to buy rocket launchers and stinger missiles via encrypted messaging, expressing interest in shooting down Trump’s plane. “Send me an RPG or stinger and I will see what we can do,” Routh allegedly told a contact he believed had access to Ukrainian military stockpiles. “Trump is not good for Ukraine.”

The explosive revelation was included in a motion filed Monday, as the DOJ seeks to introduce the weapons discussions as direct evidence of Routh’s alleged assassination plot. The government argues the anti-aircraft weapons request is not merely circumstantial, but a “substantial step” in a months-long conspiracy to murder the man who was then a former president and is now Commander-in-Chief once again.

Routh, who was indicted last fall on five felony counts—including the attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate—was discovered in the bushes near Trump’s golf club in West Palm Beach, armed with an SKS-style rifle. Secret Service agents opened fire on him before he could act.

Court filings suggest Routh’s plans extended well beyond the rifle in the bushes. The DOJ says he spent months coordinating a potential escape route to Mexico with a contact named “Ramiro,” planning to flee the country in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s assassination. Federal agents uncovered WhatsApp messages showing Routh intended to be in Mexico City within days of the September 15 plot, using web searches to map out his travel.

Routh also allegedly sought Ramiro’s help smuggling Afghan migrants across the southern border—a ruse prosecutors believe was intended to mask his movements and build trust with criminal networks.

The government says Routh didn’t just ask about prices and shipping logistics for high-powered weapons—he also sent his contact a photo of Trump’s aircraft. “Trump’s plane,” Routh wrote, according to prosecutors. “He gets on and off daily.”

“Attempting to purchase a destructive device to blow up President Trump’s airplane lies squarely within the realm of an attempt on his life,” the DOJ wrote.

In 2002, Routh pleaded guilty to possessing a weapon of mass destruction—specifically, a binary explosive device with a detonation cord and blasting cap, essentially dynamite. Prosecutors say the conviction proves Routh’s “comfort” with weapons of extreme lethality and shows that his alleged actions in 2024 were not those of a novice but a man capable of “extraordinary violence.”

In June 2023, Routh was flagged at the Honolulu airport after returning from Ukraine, where he had been recruiting foreign fighters—including from Afghanistan, Taiwan, and Moldova—to join Ukraine’s war against Russia. CBP officials documented his travels and the business card he handed over, identifying himself as director of an “International Volunteer Center” with contacts across Syria, Pakistan, and Israel.

Yet despite multiple red flags—his recruiting activities, possession of a felon’s firearm, even a warning from a nurse who met him in Ukraine—the Department of Homeland Security declined to pursue the case.

Routh’s intent, prosecutors say, was never in question. In a handwritten letter addressed “To the World” after his arrest, he declared his assassination attempt a failure—but not the end of the mission.

“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you,” he wrote. “It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)