Donald Trump assassination suspect pleads not guilty

He was charged with attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump after ambushing him with a rifle outside Trump's golf course in Florida on September 15.

A photo of the SKS rifle believed to have been used in an assassination attempt on Donald Trump. Photo: REUTERS

During a hearing before federal judge Bruce Reinhart, Routh replied "Yes, Your Honor" when asked if he understood the charges against him. His defense attorney later entered a not guilty plea on Routh's behalf.

Prosecutors said Routh planned to kill Donald Trump while he was playing golf at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach. Routh, a struggling builder who had criticized Trump in a self-published book, left behind a letter months earlier that hinted at his intention to kill Trump.

In the letter, Routh wrote: "This was a plot to assassinate Donald Trump, but I failed."

Routh was found hiding outside a fence near the sixth hole with an AK-47-style rifle, a digital camera and metal plates believed to be bulletproof by the Secret Service. A Secret Service agent spotted Routh's gun and opened fire when he saw it through the fence. Routh then fled and was arrested on a Florida highway.

Routh was initially charged with weapons-related crimes, but last week a new indictment added charges of attempted murder, assaulting a federal agent and possession of a weapon during the violence.

This is the second time Mr. Trump has faced an assassination attempt in about two months. On July 13, at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, a gunman shot Mr. Trump in the right ear and killed an attendee before being shot dead by Secret Service agents.

Hong Hanh (according to CNA, Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/nghi-pham-am-sat-ong-donald-trump-tuyen-bo-khong-nhan-toi-post314687.html