The shooter has been identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks (20). (File)
Milwaukee, United States:
The gunman who shot former President Donald Trump during an election rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday appears to have acted alone, according to the FBI, which is investigating the act as a possible act of “domestic terrorism.”
The shooter has been identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks (20).
“At this point in the investigation, it appears he was a lone actor, but we still have more investigation to do,” said Robert Wells, executive assistant director of the FBI’s National Security Branch.
The FBI, he said, is investigating this as an assassination attempt, but also as a potential act of domestic terrorism. The anti-terrorism and criminal departments are working together to determine the motive, he added.
The FBI is leading the investigation into the assassination attempt on Trump during an election rally in Pennsylvania.
Trump was hit by a bullet that pierced the upper part of his right ear. He is now safe and continues his schedule, including traveling to Milwaukee to attend the Republican National Convention, which would formally nominate him as the party’s presidential candidate against incumbent Joe Biden.
“The shooter may have died, but the investigation is still ongoing. And that’s why we’re limited in what we say at this time,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray.
“What we saw yesterday was nothing less than an attack on democracy and our democratic process,” he told reporters at a news conference in Washington DC.
An FBI official said the investigation into the shooter at Donald Trump’s rally on Saturday has not yet revealed any mental health issues, threatening messages or other motives, but he cautioned that it was too early.
The shooter, according to the FBI, used an AR-style rifle chambered in 5.56mm, a common caliber for such weapons.
The New York Times said authorities were searching the gunman’s social media and other assets in an attempt to determine a motive for the attack.
Biden is likely to address the nation from the Oval Office at 8 p.m. He will deliver “a powerful and necessary speech to inform the nation of the horrific attack on Donald Trump and the need for every American to come together to not only condemn, but to end once and for all, the political violence in this country.” to end.” a campaign official told the newspaper.
Crooks graduated from the Community College of Allegheny County two months ago with an associate degree in engineering science, school officials said in a statement, adding that they were “shocked and saddened by the horrific turn of events.” Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, said in a memo to her agents that “the attempted assassination of former President Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, is a moment that will forever be remembered in history.”
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
