Defendants linked to alleged would-be Trump assassin plead guilty to gun crimes

Two defendants who supplied a firearm to the man charged with trying to kill President Donald Trump in Florida in 2024 have pleaded guilty to gun-related charges, newly-surfaced court documents show.

Tina Cooper and Ronnie Oxendine admitted in June to firearms trafficking and possessing an unregistered firearm, respectively, according to their plea agreements. Federal prosecutors said the pair conspired to sell a Chinese-made rifle in August 2024 to Routh, who was arrested the next month after hiding among trees with a similar type of rifle at a golf course where then-presidential candidate Trump was playing.

Cooper and Oxendine were both arrested on April 15, but their cases and plea deals were not reported by a major news outlet until Tuesday night.

Cooper Factual Basis Document by Hudson Crozier on Scribd

Cooper, who was Oxendine’s employee at a North Carolina roofing company, acted as a middleman by purchasing the Chinese-made rifle from Oxendine to give to Routh, according to documents detailing the facts behind the guilty pleas. Oxendine went through with the sale despite Cooper telling him the gun was for Routh.

Oxendine was not charged with a crime in the sale of Routh’s rifle, but the FBI found an unregistered shotgun in his home, which led to his guilty plea.

Attorneys for Cooper, Oxendine and Routh did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

Cooper later advised Oxendine to delete all text messages related to Routh and to refuse to cooperate with the FBI after learning of Routh’s alleged assassination attempt against Trump, documents show.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Routh in September with attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. The DOJ has alleged that Routh, an avid Ukraine supporter, expressed fear that Trump would negatively affect the country’s war with Russia and tried to obtain a rocket launcher from a supposed Ukrainian associate for his plans.

Cooper faces up to 15 years in prison, while Oxendine may receive up to ten years, according to their plea agreements.

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