A new video has emerged that allegedly depicts Thomas Matthew Crooks behaving suspiciously before allegedly attempting to assassinate former US president Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday. A report claims that the US Secret Service spotted Crooks with a rangefinder three hours before the rally began, initially noticing him with the device at 3 pm in the security screening area.
Numerous social media users have reacted to the video, with one commenting, “He should have been detained just for having a rangefinder near the President and been questioned. Why would anyone have a device like that? How did he even get it inside the area?” Another user wrote, “This isn’t a failure. We call it as we see it. This was intentional. They wanted to hurt President Trump.” A third user criticized, “The failures by the police and Secret Service can’t be overstated. Ridiculous. Ridiculous. This happens when you have DEI leadership.”
There is widespread criticism directed at the Secret Service for its failure to protect Donald Trump, with calls for Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign. According to media reports, Crooks fired shots at Trump from approximately 135 meters (147 yards) away using an AR-15-style rifle. The Associated Press reported that Crooks’ father, Matthew Crooks, purchased the firearm in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, from Gander Mountain in 2013.
Witnesses and law enforcement officials observed Crooks walking around for at least thirty minutes before climbing onto the roof of a building adjacent to the Butler Farm Show grounds, where Trump was speaking. Spectators called for police intervention as Crooks fired two rapid bursts of shots. In response, a Secret Service counter-sniper shot and killed Crooks with a single headshot within about 15 seconds.
During his rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, Donald Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt by Thomas Matthew Crooks, who opened fire at him. The attack left Trump with a bloodied face, as he stated that the bullet had grazed the “upper part of his right ear.”
