FBI Releases New Photos Of Trump Assassination Bid, Rules Out Foreign Hand

United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI, which is investigating the assassination attempt on Donald Trump at the Republican rally in Pennsylvania last month, has revealed that the gunman Thomas Crooks acted alone.

The FBI said it has found no evidence of any foreign involvement in the case. The investigating agency however said that the motive behind the assassination attempt still remains unclear.

Sharing details about the gunman’s search history, the FBI said, Thomas Crooks, 20, has varied ideologies. They also also shared photos of the weapon used and said they had found Improvised Explosive Devices or IEDs in his vehicle.

Speaking about Thomas Crooks’ search history, the FBI revealed that he had searched more than 60 times for information about the Republican presidential candidate, as well as his then-rival, Democratic candidate and President Joe Biden. The gunman’s online searches date as far back as September 2023. After nearly a year-long extensive search, the gunman chose to register for the Trump rally.

The FBI explained that the gunman had mounted a “sustained, detailed effort” to attack a major gathering of some sort before finally deciding to target the Republican presidential candidate at the rally in Pennsylvania in July.

“We saw a sustained, detailed effort to plan an attack on some events, meaning he looked at any number of events or targets,” Kevin Rojek, the FBI’s top official in western Pennsylvania, told reporters.

Mr Rojek further said that Crooks became “hyper-focused” on the Trump rally when it was announced “and looked at it as a target of opportunity.”

The assassination attempt on Donald Trump took place on July 13, 2024 when the former president was addressing a Republican campaign rally in Buttler, Pennsylvania. The shooter Thomas Crooks, was from Bethel Park, a village 40 miles south of where Trump’s rally was held.

Crooks fired multiple gunshots from an AR-15-style rifle during the rally, of which, one grazed Donald Trump’s ear. The shooter planted himself on the roof of a manufacturing plant located around 130 yards away from the stage at Butler Farm Show grounds. While Donald Trump survived the assassination bid with the US Secret Service agents storming the stage to protect him, the shooting led to the death of one civilian and caused severe injuries to two others.

Thomas Crooks was shot dead at the rally by the US Secret Service Counter Sniper Team. His motive remains unknown to this date.