Thursday, July 18, 2024 - The gunman who tried to kill Donald Trump searched online for a member of the Royal family days before his attempt on the former president’s life, FBI investigators have said.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was killed seconds after opening
fire on the former president at his rally in Pennsylvania over the weekend.
FBI investigators told members of Congress that Crooks
had gone online to 'scope out' a number of potential high-profile assassination
targets - which included an unnamed member of the Royal Family.
The revelation came after federal agents downloaded the
contents of two of Crooks' mobile phones.
The wannabe hitman also looked up Christopher Wray, the
FBI's director, and Merrick Garland, the US attorney general.
Investigators also disclosed that Crooks' devices contained
images of President Joe Biden and Trump, as well as the dates of both
Trump rallies and the Democratic National Convention, which are due to take
place in Chicago next month.
News of the FBI's discovery came as it was revealed Crooks
had written an ominous warning on a gaming platform before he tried to murder
Trump.
US Senators were told the 20-year-old killer posted on
Steam: 'July 13 will be my premiere, watch as it unfolds.'
On July 13 he opened fire on Republican nominee Mr Trump
from a roof just 130 yards away from the rally stage in
Butler, Pennsylvania.
Following the assassination attempt, the US Secret Service
was accused of incompetence over its failure to protect Trump.
The agency was alerted to a 'suspicious person' close to the
stage an hour before the attack took place, and Crooks was booted out of the
venue after setting off a metal detector.
Senators also learned that Crooks was spotted by Secret
Service agents 10 minutes before Mr Trump walked out onstage, a full 20 minutes
before he was shot.
Mike Lee, the Republican Senator for Utah, confirmed this in
a tweet Wednesday afternoon.
'They had identified the shooter as "suspicious" a
full 19 minutes before the shooting,' he posted.
Crooks was shot seconds after attempting to murder the
former President, with his dead body found on a roof just 130 yards from the
stage where Trump was speaking.
The FBI also found he had two cell phones, the second of
which was found at home with only 27 contacts.
Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle has since been slammed
for the botched protection operation.
She has been under growing pressure since it emerged that
her agents were repeatedly warned about would-be assassin Thomas Crooks as he
prepared to shoot the president at Saturday's campaign rally in Butler,
Pennsylvania.
.jpg)
.jpg)
0 Comments