NEW: FBI had tip on Ryan Routh being 'felon in possession of a firearm' in 2019

In a press conference on Monday following a second assassination attempt on 2024 GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, the FBI revealed that the suspect, Ryan Wesley Routh, was previously the subject of a tip to the FBI which alleged that he was a felon in possession of a firearm.

"By way of his background, in 2002, as the United States Attorney mentioned, the suspect was charged and convicted in North Carolina for possession of mass destruction," Jeffrey Veltri, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Miami’s field office, said. "Law enforcement checks also reveal that from 1997 to 2010, the subject had numerous felony charges for stolen goods."

"I can also share with you that he was the subject of a previously closed 2019 tip to the FBI, where it was alleged he was a felon in possession of a firearm. In following up on the tip, the alleged complainant was interviewed and did not verify, I repeat, did not verify providing the initial information. The FBI passed that information to local law enforcement in Honolulu."

On Monday, Routh was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. Routh could face up to 15 years in prison for a conviction on the first count, and a possible five-year sentence on the second count.

On Sunday, the Secret Service opened fire as Trump was playing golf in Florida after they noticed the suspect in the bushes. The suspect fled and was later arrested on I-95.

Officials said on Sunday that the suspect had been hiding in the "bushes" and that "an AK-47 style rifle with a scope, two backpacks which were hung on the fence that had ceramic tile in them, and a GoPro" had been found in the bushes at the golf course.