FACT CHECK: Did Ron DeSantis Refuse To Hand Over The Would-Be Trump Assassin To The Feds?
A screenshot of a tweet shared on Instagram claims Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis purportedly refused to hand over would-be Trump assassin Ryan Wesley Routh to federal agents.
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Verdict: False
The FBI did not reference the claim in a Sept. 15 press release regarding the incident, and there is no other evidence to support the claim.
Fact Check:
According to court papers, Routh had been camped outside Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida in a wooded area for 12 hours before being discovered by a Secret Service agent, according to NBC News. Trump was on the “fifth fairway” and “not in Routh’s line of sight” when Routh was discovered, the outlet reported.
The screenshot of the tweet shared on Instagram claims DeSantis purportedly refused to hand over would-be Trump assassin Routh to federal agents.
“Reports are that Desantis [sic] isn’t allowing Trumps [sic] would be assassin [sic] to be handed over to the feds. [sic] It makes sense. Why would the three letter agencies be in charge of the investigation when they probably orchestrated it?” the text of the tweet reads. The claim was originally shared on X, the social media platform previously called Twitter, on September 16.
The claim is false. According to a September 15 press release, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) responded to the incident involving Routh in Florida. There is no mention of DeSantis refusing to hand Routh over to FBI agents in the release, as the Instagram and X posts both suggest.
Likewise, recent press releases issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)’s Office of Public Affairs also do not repeat the claim. According to both releases, Routh has been charged with “possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession and receipt of a firearm with an obliterated serial number” after a Secret Service agent noticed a rifle sticking out of the tree line near Trump’s Florida golf club.
Federal agents discovered Routh had a loaded SKS-style rifle with a scope following the incident, the same releases indicate. Routh was previously convicted of felonies in North Carolina in December 2002 and March 2010. The FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), and the U.S. Secret Service are all investigating the incident, the releases state.
In addition, while speaking with reporters recently, DeSantis said Florida law enforcement officials will launch their own investigation of the incident, The Associated Press reported. Nowhere in the article is the claim that DeSantis purportedly refused to turn Routh over to federal agents mentioned.
Furthermore, Check Your Fact found no credible news reports to support the claim. Actually, the opposite is true. On September 17, USA Today reported the claim was false. (RELATED: No, Both Trump Assailants Did Not Appear In BlackRock Ads)
Check Your Fact has contacted DeSantis’ office for comment. Check Your Fact also contacted the FBI about the claim and the agency declined to comment.
