Ryan Routh Suspicions Reported Multiple Times Before Arrest \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Multiple warnings about Ryan Routh, now accused of an attempted assassination on former President Donald Trump, were submitted to U.S. agencies like the FBI and State Department. Concerns ranged from violent behavior to suspicious recruitment activities for Ukraine’s war. Despite these tips, it remains unclear if authorities acted adequately on them, raising questions about the response.
Ryan Routh: Missed Warnings Quick Looks
- Four Reports Submitted: U.S. agencies, including the FBI and State Department, received at least four tips about Ryan Routh’s troubling behavior and suspicious activities before his arrest.
- Nurse’s Warnings: Chelsea Walsh, a nurse who met Routh in Ukraine, reported his escalating anger and detailed plans for violence, including an assassination plot against Vladimir Putin.
- Government Inaction?: Walsh never received a follow-up from authorities despite multiple reports, including a detailed tip to U.S. Customs and Border Protection in 2022.
- Routh’s Own Words: During questioning by U.S. Customs in 2023, Routh admitted to recruiting foreign fighters, prompting a referral for further investigation, which Homeland Security reportedly declined to pursue.
- Missed Opportunities: Officials, including former CIA officer Sarah Adams, believe the agencies dropped the ball, failing to act on key warnings that could have prevented the assassination attempt on Trump.
Deep Look
Before Ryan Routh was arrested in connection with an apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, he had raised multiple red flags that were reported to various U.S. government agencies. At least four times, agencies including the FBI, State Department, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection were tipped off about Routh’s increasingly violent and erratic behavior. Yet, what actions—if any—were taken to address these warnings remains unclear, leading to questions about whether federal authorities did enough to prevent the incident.
One of the earliest and most detailed warnings came from Chelsea Walsh, a nurse who encountered Routh in Kyiv, Ukraine, in 2022. Walsh was working as a nurse and aid worker at the time, while Routh was recruiting foreign soldiers to join the fight against Russia. According to Walsh, Routh exhibited disturbing behavior that escalated over time. She recalled witnessing him lash out in anger, kicking a panhandler and threatening to burn down a music studio that had offended him. Walsh also noted his alarming remarks about his own children, speaking of them with hatred.
Most chilling, however, was Routh’s obsessive plotting to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin. Walsh recounted how Routh detailed elaborate plans involving explosives, poisons, and cross-border maneuvers, saying he intended to “kill him in his sleep.” Walsh was so concerned by Routh’s violent tendencies and specific threats that she reported him to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials during an hourlong interview upon her return to the United States in June 2022. She later repeated her concerns in separate tips to the FBI and Interpol. Despite these warnings, Walsh says she never received any follow-up communication from the authorities.
Walsh’s account is one of several reports made to the U.S. government regarding Routh’s actions in the years leading up to his arrest. In 2019, a tip was sent to the FBI about Routh being in possession of a firearm despite having a felony conviction. Additionally, another report, submitted to the State Department last year by an aid worker, raised suspicions about Routh’s military recruitment tactics. Sarah Adams, a former CIA officer and one of the people behind this report, said she grew concerned after learning that Routh was attempting to recruit former Afghan fighters with false promises of positions in the Ukrainian military. Adams drafted a bulletin advising 50 humanitarian aid groups to avoid contact with Routh and reported him to the State Department through an online form.
Yet, none of these reports seem to have led to substantial action. According to Adams, she has no evidence that the State Department ever followed up on her tip. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller later stated that no records exist regarding any complaints about Routh, though he conceded it’s possible that informal communication may have occurred without being officially documented.
More alarming still is that Routh’s suspicious activities were noted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in June 2023 when he was questioned at Honolulu airport after returning from Ukraine, Poland, and Turkey. Routh admitted to recruiting fighters from countries such as Afghanistan, Moldova, and Taiwan, and even handed agents a business card listing himself as the director of an organization called the International Volunteer Center. Customs agents referred the case to Homeland Security Investigations for further scrutiny. However, the inquiry was ultimately not pursued, with Homeland Security determining that Routh’s actions did not meet the threshold for immediate custody.
This failure to act is now the subject of scrutiny, especially following Routh’s arrest in connection with an apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach golf course. While the agencies involved either did not respond to inquiries or declined to comment on specific cases, the lack of decisive action has drawn widespread criticism. Some officials, such as Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, have voiced concerns over whether federal agencies are doing enough to address the growing number of potential threats they receive daily.
Walsh, who first sounded the alarm about Routh, is among those questioning the adequacy of the government’s response. Reflecting on her efforts to alert the authorities, she expressed frustration, saying, “The authorities have definitely dropped the ball on this. They were warned.”
Adams, the former CIA officer, echoed similar sentiments, lamenting that there was ample evidence to warrant an investigation into Routh’s activities, but no apparent follow-up. “There was plenty to look into,” Adams said. “I don’t know if they even assigned someone to work it.”
In congressional testimony this past week, Katrina Berger, the executive associate director of Homeland Security Investigations, confirmed that Routh’s case had been referred for investigation but defended the agency’s decision not to act further. She stated that Homeland Security receives hundreds of such referrals each day, and Routh’s comments during the 2023 Honolulu airport questioning did not appear to pose an immediate threat. However, she admitted that she was not certain if further investigation into Routh was declined, promising to look into the matter.
With Routh now in custody, questions remain about how many other potential threats may be slipping through the cracks due to overwhelmed agencies or inadequate follow-up procedures. The case serves as a stark reminder of the challenges authorities face in identifying and acting upon credible threats before they materialize into real danger.
