Trump assassination attempt: Shooter had photos of Trump, Biden, other US officials on his phone

The 20-year-old Pennsylvania man who tried to assassinate Donald Trump had photos on his phone of the former Republican president, President Joe Biden and other officials, including Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Chris Wray, according to two people familiar with the matter.Investigators searching Thomas Matthew Crooks’ devices have also found that the shooter looked up the dates for the Democratic National Convention as well as Trump’s appearances, according to the people who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition on anonymity to discuss details of the ongoing probe.What to knowThomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, has been identified as the subject involved in the attempted assassination on former President Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13. The shooter was killed by the Secret Service.The victim killed in the shooting was identified as Corey Comperatore, 50, of Sarver, Pennsylvania. The two injured victims are 57-year-old David Dutch, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and 74-year-old James Copenhaver, of Moon Township, Pennsylvania.The shooting is being investigated as an attempted assassination of the former president. The FBI has assumed the role of the lead federal law enforcement agency in the investigation and has not yet identified a motive for the assassination attempt. Crooks had photos on his phone of the former Republican president, President Joe Biden and other officials, according to two people familiar with the matter.Butler County is located about 46 miles outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.The FBI has been searching for clues into what drove Crooks to open fire at Saturday’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in an attempt to assassinate the GOP presidential nominee. The FBI has said they are investigating the shooting as a potential act of domestic terrorism but have yet to find a clear ideological motive. The FBI gained access to Crooks’ cellphone, scoured his computer, home and car, and interviewed more than 100 people so far.The shooter had also searched for information about major depressive disorder, according to three people familiar the investigation. But investigators have not yet determined whether he was actually diagnosed with the disorder, one of the people said. Studies have shown that the vast majority of people with mental illnesses are not violent, and experts say most people who are violent do not have mental illnesses.On a conference call with reporters Sunday, Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the Pittsburgh field office, said: “We have no indication of any mental health issues.”Law enforcement failed to keep sight of Trump shooterCrooks visited the Donald Trump rally location twice, his cell phone contained images of both Trump and President Joe Biden, and the would-be assassin’s search history included dates of the Democratic National Convention as well as future Trump events, three U.S. officials told CNN. The new details revealed more about what Crooks was doing in the days and hours leading up to his attempt to assassinate the former president. But investigators combing through Crooks’ physical and digital trail still lack the key detail that would explain why the 20-year-old climbed the roof in Butler, Pennsylvania, with an AR-style weapon: a motive.Crooks also conducted searches online about major depression disorder, administration officials told Congress during briefings Wednesday.Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, FBI Director Chris Wray and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate briefed the House and Senate by phone Wednesday on what law enforcement has learned so far about the shooting attack at the Trump rally.The officials said there is still not a clear motive for the assassination attempt, according to lawmakers. Abbate said in the briefings that the department has not found political or ideological information about the suspect at the shooter’s home. Secret Service director subpoenaedThe Republican chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee issued a subpoena Wednesday to the Secret Service director compelling her to appear before the committee on Monday for what is scheduled to be the first congressional hearing into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.And even before the first hearing, Republican calls for Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign intensified Wednesday with top Republican leaders from both the House and the Senate saying she should step down. The director has said she has no intention of resigning.Rep. James Comer said initially that the Secret Service committed to her attendance but that Homeland Security officials appeared to intervene and there has been no “meaningful updates or information” shared with the committee.Comer said the “lack of transparency and failure to cooperate” with the committee called into question Cheatle’s ability to lead the Secret Service and necessitated the subpoena.Cheatle has said the agency understands the importance of a review ordered by Democratic President Joe Biden and would fully participate in it as well as with congressional committees looking into the shooting.In response to the subpoena and an earlier letter from Comer, Zephranie Buetow, an assistant secretary at Homeland Security, said that while the department was “disappointed that the Committee rushed to issue a subpoena,” Cheatle welcomes the chance to testify. The official said that given Cheatle’s focus on securing the ongoing Republican National Convention, the department would appreciate if she could appear on July 25 or July 26, or the following week, instead of Monday.The Oversight panel rejected that request for a change of date and committee spokesperson Jessica Collins said, “Director Cheatle has agreed to comply with Chairman Comer’s subpoena and the hearing will take place as scheduled.”“Americans demand and deserve answers from the director about the attempted assassination of President Trump and the Secret Service’s egregious failures,” Collins said. In addition to the Congressional inquiries, Cheatle and the Secret Service are also facing an inquiry by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general. Security responsibility questions still lingerA key issue in the unfolding aftermath of the shooting is how security responsibilities were divided between the Secret Service and local law enforcement at the rally and what breakdowns occurred that eventually allowed the gunman onto the roof.The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was able to get within 135 meters (157 yards) of the stage where the Republican former president was speaking when he opened fire. That’s despite a threat on Trump’s life from Iran leading to additional security for the former president in the days before the Saturday rally.A bloodied Trump was quickly escorted off the stage by Secret Service agents, and agency snipers killed the shooter. Trump said the upper part of his right ear was pierced in the shooting. One rallygoer was killed, and two others critically wounded.Cheatle said her agency was working to understand how Saturday’s shooting happened and to make sure something like it never does again.Video above: Get the Facts: Who was Thomas Matthew CrooksShooter’s motive still in questionCrooks visited the Donald Trump rally location twice, his cell phone contained images of both Trump and President Joe Biden, and the would-be assassin’s search history included dates of the Democratic National Convention as well as future Trump events, three U.S. officials told CNN.The new details revealed more about what Crooks was doing in the days and hours leading up to his attempt to assassinate the former president. But investigators combing through Crooks’ physical and digital trail still lack the key detail that would explain why the 20-year-old climbed the roof in Butler, Pennsylvania, with an AR-style weapon: a motive.Crooks also conducted searches online about major depression disorder, administration officials told Congress during briefings Wednesday.Cheatle, FBI Director Chris Wray and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate briefed the House and Senate by phone Wednesday on what law enforcement has learned so far about the shooting attack at the Trump rally.The officials said there is still not a clear motive for the assassination attempt, according to lawmakers. Abbate said in the briefings that the department has not found political or ideological information about the suspect at the shooter’s home.Lawmakers on the calls told CNN that the Secret Service and FBI officials provided new details on Crooks’ mental state and actions before he shot at Trump on Saturday, though many expressed dissatisfaction at what they were told to explain how Crooks was able to fire multiple shots at Trump.Two sources on the call also said briefers told lawmakers that the shooter visited the rally location twice after the Butler rally was announced, including on the day of the shooting. Based on cell phone data, it was estimated that the shooter was there for 70 minutes.Law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation told CNN that in addition to the photos of Trump and Biden, the shooter’s phone also contained pictures of congressional leaders, such as House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.There were also pictures of other politicians across the political spectrum, including Rudy Giuliani, the former Trump attorney involved in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who is prosecuting both Trump and Giuliani.Almost all of the pictures appeared to have been downloaded from the internet and were not accompanied by any threatening language or messages. Sources briefed on the investigation told CNN that the phone also showed searches dating back to this spring, looking for the dates and locations of Trump rallies and for information on the two political conventions.U.S. officials said the significance of the photos, as well as the searches for the conventions and Trump events, is not clear.Wray announced in the briefings that the FBI has conducted more than 200 interviews to date and vowed to leave “no stone unturned” in the investigation, one lawmaker said.Video above: Get the Facts: Verifying claims made about security at Trump rally When was Crooks spotted and whereSen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, wrote on social media that law enforcement had “identified the shooter as ‘suspicious’ a full 19 minutes before the shooting.”A source told CNN that about 19 minutes before the shooting occurred, law enforcement was trying to locate the shooter, but they could not find him until he was on the roof.Police responded to a call of a “suspicious male” around the same time that Trump arrived for his Pennsylvania rally on Saturday, according to Butler Township Manager Tom Knights.Knights said in a statement Wednesday that the report of the suspicious male placed him as being near the AGR building, where Trump’s would-be assassin ultimately launched his attack.From the roof of the building, which was roughly 150 yards north of the rally stage, Crooks fired several shots at Trump, grazing him in the ear and hitting several rally attendees, including one who was killed. Secret Service agents killed Crooks after he opened fire.Video below: Exclusive video appears to show Thomas Crooks at rally hour before Trump assassination attemptOfficers did not initially locate the person around the building, according to Knights’ statement. He said an officer then tried to access the roof with the help of a colleague who tried to hoist him up. The officer scaling the side of the building saw an individual on the roof who pointed a rifle at him, Knights said.“The officer was in a defenseless position and there was no way he could engage the actor while holding onto the roof edge. The officer let go and fell to the ground,” Knights said.Butler Township Police “immediately” communicated the individual’s location and shared that he had a gun but, “Moments later, the individual commenced firing,” according to the statement.