Donald Trump was swiftly moved to safety after a bullet hit his right ear
Security agencies in the US have identified the shooter behind the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, but are yet to share details on the motive behind the crime.
The FBI has identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks as the "subject involved" in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, the agency said in a statement.
Earlier, at a press briefing, FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek said, "At this time, we are not prepared to identify who the shooter is. We are close to that identification. As soon as we are 100 per cent confident who that individual is, we will share it with the press."
The FBI official also said they are not yet sure of the motive behind the assassination attempt, that has also left one person dead and two others critically injured.
"We do not currently have an identified motive, although our investigators are working tirelessly to attempt to identify what that motive was," he said.
The FBI is the lead federal law enforcement agency in the investigation into the assassination attempt.
Updated FBI statement on the ongoing incident that took place today in Butler, Pennsylvania. https://t.co/MfwVeYs3kF pic.twitter.com/6fWqcTbA1S
— FBI (@FBI) July 14, 2024
The agency has said the campaign venue at Butler continues to be an "active crime scene". "We are working closely with other federal agencies, our state partners and our local police partners as well."
Colonel Chris Paris, commissioner of Pennsylvania state police, told the media that they are working closely with the FBI in this investigation. "We are prepared to support this investigation in any way, shape or form. And we stand ready to participate in a full, fair, competent and thorough investigation," he said.
The FBI has also called upon the public for any information on the shooting. "We need the public's help, anyone who was on scene, who saw anything... please report that to the FBI," Special Agent Rojek said.
The assassination attempt on Trump, US President Joe Biden's biggest opponent in the US election later this year, has set alarm bells ringing through the country's security establishment.
Multiple rounds targeting the former President were fired at the Butler rally yesterday. Trump said one of the bullets pierced the upper part of his right ear. One person was killed and two others critically injured in the shooting. Visuals showed Secret Service operatives escorting the former President to safety after the shooting, bloodstains on his face.
US President Joe Biden has strongly condemned the incident and also spoken to his arch rival after the shooting.
"There's no place in America for this kind of violence. It's sick. It's sick. It's one of the reasons why we have to unite this country... We cannot be like this, we cannot condone this," Biden told reporters in an emergency briefing after the attack on Trump.
"The idea that there's political violence, or violence in America like this, is just unheard of. It's just not appropriate. Everybody, everybody must condemn it. Everybody," Biden said.
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