Three law enforcement countersnipers were posted inside the building that suspected gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks climbed up to open fire upon former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
What’s more, the law enforcement snipers noticed Crooks walk up to the building and look at its roof, according to a local law enforcement source who spoke with CBS News.
Crooks walked away but quickly returned, when one of the law enforcement snipers took a photo of him, the source said. The sniper called the command post about Crooks after the would-be assassin pulled out a range finder to determine a target’s distance.
The 20-year-old gunman walked out of sight again and returned with a backpack. The law enforcement source said the snipers radioed for backup and told command that Crooks was walking toward the rear of the building, which was more than 150 yards from the rally stage.
Minutes later, Crooks fired eight rounds at the stage, killing one man, wounding two other people and grazing Mr. Trump’s right ear. Countersnipers positioned near the stage shot and killed Crooks shortly afterward.
Bystanders also called out to police about Crooks’ behavior before the first shot was fired.
Multiple people reported a suspicious man pacing near the rally’s metal detectors, prompting a response from two Butler Township police officers, according to a law enforcement source who spoke with The Associated Press.
One of the officers hoisted the other so he could scan the building’s roof. When Crooks noticed the officer, he turned around and pointed his rifle at the cop.
Butler Township Manager Tom Knights said the officer lost his grip and fell 8 feet to the ground, injuring his ankle.
“He was literally dangling from the edge of a building and took the defensive position he needed to at that time. He couldn’t hold himself up,” Mr. Knights told the AP.
Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe also defended the officer’s reaction, saying the lawman couldn’t grab ahold of his gun in that situation.
“I think all law enforcement on site did everything that they could, especially the local law enforcement,” Sheriff Slupe told the AP. “I hope they’re not made a scapegoat, because they did their job to the best of their abilities.”
Rally security included the Secret Service, Pennsylvania State Police and about a dozen local police officers and sheriff’s deputies.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle told ABC News on Monday that local police were inside the building while the gunman was on the roof.
She also said local authorities were responsible for securing the building.
Sheriff Slupe said in a separate interview that securing the building wasn’t his department’s responsibility.
The Secret Service director also defended the decision to not put snipers on the structure’s roof by saying it would have been unsafe.
“That building in particular has a sloped roof at its highest point. And so, you know, there’s a safety factor that would be considered there that we wouldn’t want to put somebody up on a sloped roof,” she told the network. “And so, you know, the decision was made to secure the building, from inside.”
Ms. Cheatle, who took over the agency’s top job in 2022, said she wouldn’t step down from her role despite the failure.
She is expected to testify before the House Oversight Committee on July 22 and the House Homeland Security Committee on July 23.
Investigators are still searching for Crooks’ motive for attempting to assassinate the former president.
Little insight was gained from the gunman’s phone Monday, and Crooks’ internet search history was mostly about computer coding and gaming, according to law enforcement sources who spoke with CNN.
No strong political or ideological leanings were revealed in interviews with Crooks’ family members, the sources said, and his parents told investigators that he didn’t seem to have any friends.
Authorities also discovered a remote detonator on his body that was connected to a box of explosives in the trunk of his car.
Even more confounding, sources told CNN, is that investigators have no clue how he assembled the explosive devices. Authorities haven’t found any evidence that Crooks researched how to make homemade explosives.
The FBI said another makeshift explosive device was found at his home in Bethel Park, about an hour away from the rally location.
“Over the last several months, Crooks received several packages, including some marked as possibly containing hazardous material, according to a review of his shipping history,” the FBI said in a bulletin.
The day before he tried to take Mr. Trump’s life, Crooks practiced his shooting at the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club near Pittsburgh.
Crooks and his father are both members of the gun club. The gun range has targets up to 200 yards away — Crooks shot into the rally crowd from about 150 yards.
On Saturday, the gunman bought a ladder from Home Depot and purchased 50 rounds of ammunition from a gun store.
Crooks then drove an hour from his home to the Butler Farm Show grounds, where he opened fire on the campaign event.
Killed in the gunfire was Corey Comperatore, 50, a former fire chief for the Buffalo Township in Pennsylvania.
Gov. Josh Shapiro said Mr. Comperatore died shielding his family from the hail of bullets.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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