The line of trees at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, has been known for years as a vantage point for photographers looking to catch a candid glimpse of the former president and other VIPs.

Nevertheless, suspected failed assassin Ryan Wesley Routh was able to camp there for nearly 12 hours on Sunday, pointing a rifle at the course, according to a federal affidavit.

He even brought snacks with him, prosecutors said.

A Secret Service agent patrolling the perimeter eventually spotted the gunman and opened fire, chasing him away before anyone was hurt. But local authorities say additional patrols in the perimeter would be an obvious security improvement when Donald Trump comes to town.

Potential Trump assassination suspect Ryan Routh camped for 12 hours under cover of darkness: court documents

Then-President Trump plays golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida on December 30, 2020. (Reuters/Marco Bello)

Trump is known to frequently visit the golf course when he stays at his Mar-a-Lago resort, about 15 minutes away. And while the visit was not on the president’s schedule, anyone scouting the area could have been alerted to his arrival by his motorcade.

Suspect of Trump assassination laughs and smiles at his first court appearance in Florida

WATCH: Palm Beach County Attorney Dave Aronberg talks to Fox Digital about a known security issue at Trump’s golf course

“There have been people who have photographed the former president playing golf before,” said Dave Aronberg, the 15th Judicial District Attorney for Palm Beach County. “They went through the bushes and managed to get a camera through the fence. You would think that maybe they would consider having someone scout the area.”

Then-President Trump plays golf at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida on December 30, 2020. (Reuters/Marco Bello)

Photographers regularly report their presence to the Secret Service and know exactly where to get a good view, the New York Post reported. They are rarely asked to leave the building, an anonymous source at a photo agency told the newspaper.

On the other hand, the source speculated, the risk of encountering a photographer may have led the suspect to be in a remote area of ​​the compound where visibility was indeed poor.

According to authorities, he never had the opportunity to see the former president. Unlike the recently failed assassin Thomas Crooks, who opened fire on a crowd at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13, grazing Trump’s ear, killing one bystander and injuring two others.

This view shows a gap in the vegetation along the grounds of Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on September 16, 2024. (Mega for Fox News Digital)

Aronberg said he did not blame the Secret Service, pointing out that the route covers a large stretch between two major highways.

“It’s a huge area to cover,” he said. “It’s not easy to walk around all the time because someone could slip in and out.”

Pat Diaz, a former Miami-Dade homicide detective who now works as a private investigator in the area, said that although it was not planned, routine surveillance of the fence with sniffer dogs should have taken place before the president’s arrival.

Suspect of Trump assassination laughs and smiles at his first court appearance in Florida

“They obviously didn’t check the exterior,” he said.

Ryan Routh, suspected of attempting to assassinate former President Trump at his golf course in West Palm Beach, is seen in handcuffs after his arrest during a traffic stop near Palm City, Florida, September 15, 2024. (Martin County Sheriff’s Office/Handout via Reuters)

In addition to photographers, homeless people have also been caught loitering at the fence, he said, welcoming Governor Ron DeSantis’ announcement of a further state-level investigation into safety at the golf course.

Witness saw Trump assassination suspect flee from bushes, took photo of getaway car

According to the FBI, phone signals show Routh arrived at the tree line around 2 a.m. Sunday and hid there until the agent found him around 1:30 p.m. He reportedly brought a bag of food, a video camera and an SKS rifle with a scope.

The Secret Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Department vehicles are seen outside the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on September 16, 2024. (Mega for Fox News Digital)

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Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe praised the agent during a press conference on Monday, telling reporters that Trump’s security personnel had shown an “exemplary” response.

“The key to this was the rapid reaction, the response, the extreme vigilance of the men and women of the U.S. intelligence community who have been confronting an unprecedented and hyperdynamic threat environment since July 13,” he said. “And they have risen to the occasion.”

This view shows a gap in the vegetation along the grounds of Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on September 16, 2024. (Mega for Fox News Digital)

Trump’s whereabouts during his golf outing were “confidential,” and the former president was several hundred yards away at another hole when the agent opened fire, he said.

An eyewitness provided a description of the suspect and his Nissan SUV, which authorities said helped officers arrest Routh about 45 minutes later on Interstate 95.

Routh has a criminal record including a conviction for possession of a weapon of mass destruction in 2002 following an altercation with police in North Carolina.

The FBI said it received a tip in 2019 that he might be a felon in possession of a firearm.