A Mobile phone footage captured the moment 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at the Donald Trump rally in Pennsylvania.
The gunman was seen lying out on his belly on a roof, seconds before he aimed and fired shots into the crowd before he got met with incoming bullets fired by a Secret Service sharpshooter.
Thomas attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump, firing several shots and killing at least one spectator, federal and local law enforcement agencies said.
Trump was quickly bundled off stage and into a waiting vehicle. Blood was clearly visible on his ear and face as protection officers rushed him away.
In a post to his Truth Social network, Trump, who has since returned home to New Jersey, said a bullet pierced the “upper part” of his right ear.
Corey Comperatore, 50, a former chief of the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company, was identified as the sole victim fatally shot by Crooks during Saturday’s attempt in Butler. Two other people were injured and are stable.
The shooter used a semiautomatic rifle, three senior U.S. law enforcement officials said based on what was found at the scene. Investigators are looking into whether the gun belonged to his father and had been purchased legally, according to two senior law enforcement officials.
He is believed to have fired eight shots before he was taken down, said an official, citing preliminary findings.
Multiple suspicious canisters or containers were found in the shooter’s vehicle, but it’s unclear whether they were functional as incendiary or explosive devices, two officials said.
Watch the video below.
