WASHINGTON (AP) — A man authorities say monitored Donald Trump for 12 hours at his golf course in Florida And wrote about his desire to kill him was charged with attempted murder on Tuesday.

Ryan Wesley Routh was originally charged with two federal firearms offenses. The enhanced charges, contained in a five-count indictment, reflect the Justice Department’s assessment that he systematically plotted to kill the Republican candidate by driving a rifle through the bushes surrounding Trump’s West Golf Course on an afternoon when Trump was playing Palm Beach took aim. Routh left a note describing his intentions, prosecutors said.

Court records show the case was assigned to Aileen Cannon, a federal judge appointed by Trump triggered intensive scrutiny for their dealings with a Criminal proceedings against Trump for illegally hoarding secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. She dismissed that case in Julya decision that special counsel Jack Smith’s team is now appealing.

The attempted murder charge was hinted at during a court hearing Monday in which prosecutors successfully argued that Routh, 58, should remain behind bars as a flight risk and public safety threat.

They claimed he wrote down his plans to kill Trump months before his Sept. 15 arrest in a handwritten note in which he described his actions as a failed “assassination attempt on Donald Trump” and offered $150,000 to anyone who would “Finishing the murder attempt” could be work.” This note was in a box that Routh had apparently dropped off at the home of an unknown witness months before his arrest.

After the assassination attempt, the person opened the box, took a photo of the front page of the letter that read “Dear World,” and contacted law enforcement.

Prosecutors also said Routh kept in his car a handwritten list of venues where Trump had appeared or was expected to attend in August, September and October.

The charge of attempted murder of a key presidential candidate can carry a life sentence if convicted. Other charges in the indictment include assault on a federal officer, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime and the two original firearms charges he faced last week.

The possible shooting was thwarted when a member of Trump’s secret service spotted the face of a partially obscured man and a gun barrel sticking through the fence line of the golf course, in front of where Trump was playing. The agent fired in the direction of Routh, who sped away and was stopped by law enforcement in a neighboring county.

Officials said Routh fired no shots and was not in his line of sight. He left behind a digital camera, a backpack, a loaded SKS rifle with a scope and a plastic bag containing groceries.

The arrest came two months later Trump was shot and injured in the ear in an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The Secret Service has admitted failings However, leading up to that shooting, he said security forces were functioning properly to thwart a possible attack in Florida.

The first charges Routh faced in a criminal complaint involved him illegally possessing a firearm despite multiple felony convictions and possessing a firearm with an erased serial number. It is common for prosecutors to file preliminary and easily provable charges when an arrest is made and then add more serious offenses later as the investigation progresses.

The FBI initially said it was investigating the incident as an apparent murder attempt, but there were no immediate charges to that effect opened the door for Florida’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis to announce his own state-level investigation, which he said could lead to more serious charges.

Casting doubt on the legitimacy of the investigation and the Justice Department more broadly, Trump complained on Monday – before the attempted murder charge was filed – that federal prosecutors had “mishandled and downplayed” the case by filing charges , which represented a “slap” on the wrist.”

When asked about Trump’s criticism at an unrelated news conference on Tuesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Justice Department would “spare no resources to ensure accountability” in this case.

“Our top priority should be to ensure that there is accountability in this case and that those running for office and their families are safe and protected,” Garland said.

The Justice Department also said Monday that authorities searching Routh’s car found six cellphones, including one that displayed a Google search with directions from Palm Beach County to Mexico.

A notebook found in his car contained criticism of the Russian and Chinese governments and advice on how to participate in the war on behalf of Ukraine.

In addition, prosecutors cited a book Routh wrote last year in which he sharply criticized Trump’s approach to foreign policy, including in Ukraine. In the book, he wrote that Iran was “free to assassinate Trump” because he withdrew from the nuclear deal.

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Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer and Curt Anderson contributed to this report.