Washington, D.C. – FBI director Christopher Wray revealed several new details about the assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump during a Wednesday hearing, including the fact that the would-be assassin researched the Oswald-Kennedy assassination ahead of his attempt on Trump’s life.
Wray was called before the House Judiciary Committee to explain how Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, managed to make his way onto a rooftop just outside Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pa., and fire into the crowd, wounding Trump and killing former fire chief Corey Comperatore. Two others were critically wounded during the shooting before a Secret Service counter-sniper killed Crooks.
A search of Crooks’s laptop revealed that he began researching the Trump rally roughly one week before the event. The would-be assassin’s browsing history suggests he was reading news articles about various public figures around that time, though Wray insisted that there was no discernible pattern as to the identity of those figures. Crooks’s motive remains unclear, Wray testified, revealing that the bureau has not uncovered any manifesto or other piece of evidence that would explain why he targeted Trump.
On July 6, Crooks searched, “how far away was Oswald from Kennedy,” referring to the assassination of former president John F. Kennedy. Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed Kennedy on November 22, 1963 from a sixth-floor window in the Texas School Books Depository as Kennedy traveled in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas. Kennedy was roughly 180 feet away from the window when Oswald fired, according to the Warren Commission.
Crooks, was roughly 450 feet away when he fired eight rounds in Trump’s direction, one of which struck the former president in the ear.
At this time, Wray said the FBI does not know why Trump was not prevented from going onto the stage after law enforcement became aware of Crooks’s presence. The FBI found no evidence Crooks had any co-conspirators, and considers him to be a “loner” based on interviews and the small number of contacts on his devices.
The FBI is leading the investigation into the security failures at the Trump rally, alongside federal, state, and local partners. Hours after the attack, the FBI identified Crooks as the shooter, and opened the investigation.
The FBI’s investigation is focused specifically on Crooks’s preparation for the attack, his motives, and other facts about him, Wray emphasized. So far, Wray believes the FBI has been “unusually” transparent about the details of an ongoing investigation, and insisted that the bureau’s understanding of the attack will “evolve” as more context becomes available.
The FBI recovered eight casings from the rooftop, but is not fully sure how Crooks was able to fire off those shots, Wray said. Crooks had two explosives in his car and one in his residence, paired with the necessary receivers. But, the FBI does not believe Crooks would have been able to detonate the explosives from the rooftop. Technicians from the bureau are continuing to analyze the explosives.
Two hours before the shooting, Crooks flew a drone over an area roughly 200 yards away from the stage Trump spoke, Wray said. The FBI believes Crooks was live-streaming the drone footage and the drone gave him a view of the stage.
The gunman visited the premises three times, the first being a 20-minute trip a week before the rally. The day of, Crooks spent 70 minutes at the scene in the morning, and then returned for good in the afternoon.
Crooks used an “AR-style” rifle to carry out the shooting that was purchased legally. He purchased the weapon from his father legally after his father bought it from a gun store, Wray revealed. The rifle had a collapsible stock, which may have allowed Crooks to conceal it upon entering the rally area, Wray said.
Early on in the hearing, Wray noted that it remains unclear to the FBI how Crooks got onto the rooftop for the assassination attempt. The FBI discovered that Crooks purchased a five foot tall ladder by tracing it to a receipt, but the ladder was not on the scene. Later, Wray updated congress on the FBI’s evidence response team’s discovery that Crooks used mechanical equipment and vertical pipes on the side of the building to climb it.
Prior to the shooting, Crooks was not on the FBI’s radar and Wray does not believe any FBI informants or agents were at the Trump rally. The day before the attack, Crooks went to a shooting range and practiced with an “AR-style” rifle. Wray tentatively described Crooks as an “avid” firearm hobbyist, and noted his visits to gun ranges and gun clubs.
Moments before Crooks fired bullets into the crowd, a local police officer climbed up to the roof with assistance from another officer, Wray explained. Crooks was in a prone position facing the crowd, when he turned around and pointed his weapon at the officer. This took place an hour after local law enforcement observed saw carrying a rangefinder in a suspicious manner.
Days after the assassination attempt, Butler Township Sheriff Michael Slupe confirmed the encounter took place and defended the officer’s choice to stand down.
Wray began his testimony by describing the FBI’s “complex threat environment” and acknowledging the American people’s great interest in getting to the bottom of what happened at the Trump rally.
Disgraced former Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle testified Monday and repeatedly deferred to the FBI’s investigation, rather than answering questions about the evidence gathered at the shooting and information about the gunman.
Cheatle failed to explain the Secret Service’s major failures leading up to Crooks’s attack, such as the lack of a security presence on the rooftop and the personnel assignments for the Trump rally.
Although Cheatle received briefings from the FBI, she would not go into any detail about what was discussed. Cheatle resigned Tuesday morning after her performance at Monday’s hearing brought Democrats and Republicans together in calling for her ouster.
In contrast to Cheatle, Wray appeared willing to answer specific questions about Crooks’s activities, with the necessary level of caution because the FBI’s investigation is ongoing.