BETHEL PARK, Pa. – FBI Director Christopher Wray said it’s still unclear how suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks got onto the roof of the building where he targeted former President Donald Trump, but he doesn’t believe he used a ladder.
Wray told the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that his agency believes “the suspect used some kind of mechanical device to climb onto the roof from the ground and vertical piping on the side of the AGR building on July 13,” even though “bloody receipts” found on Crooks’ body included the purchase of a five-foot ladder.
“In other words, we don’t believe he used a ladder to get up there,” he said in Washington, DC.
Timeline: Trump assassination attempt
Thomas Matthew Crooks is photographed in front of the Butler Fairgrounds in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on the former president on July 14, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Bethel Park School District/Getty Images)
“No ladder was found at the scene,” Ray told Rep. Steve Cohen. “He purchased a ladder. But the ladder was not found at the scene.”
“The ladder didn’t fall because it had no legs,” Cohen joked.
FBI Director Christopher Wray Testifies About Assassination Attempt at Trump Rally
Buildings are seen adjacent to the Butler Farm Show, the site of a campaign rally for former Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, in Butler, Pennsylvania, Monday, July 15, 2024. Thomas Crooks fired shots from the roof of the complex in an assassination attempt on July 13, wounding Trump. (AP Photo/Jean J. Puskar)
The building pictured is the one that suspect Thomas Crooks climbed to shoot former President Donald Trump. Former NYPD Inspector Paul Mauro suspects Crooks used a hallway that connects the two buildings to get to the roof and hid an AR-15 in the air conditioning unit pictured. (Fox News)
The Home Depot where Crooks bought the ladder is a short drive from his parents’ home on Milford Drive in Bethel Park. Home Depot did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Ray said outdoor events such as concerts or political rallies “are often particularly difficult to ensure adequate security because of the wide range of threats they may face.”
The Trump shooter made a terrifying Google search the day he registered for the Butler rally
FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the FY2025 FBI budget proposal on June 4, 2024, in Washington, DC. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
“Additionally, threats against public officials, including politicians, are becoming more prevalent in today’s climate, which adds to the challenge,” Ray continued.
Fox News contributor Paul Mauro used drone footage of the shooting scene at the Butler Farm Show earlier this week to point out possible locations from which Crooks could have accessed a vantage point.
Mauro said a hallway leading to the building and another adjacent building was an access point that allowed Crooks to get onto the roof. An air conditioning unit seen from above may be where the suspect hid an AR-15 before the rally, officials told Mauro.
Trump shooter visited Home Depot before assassination attempt
The exterior of the Home Depot store at 4000 Oxford Drive in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. The store is reportedly where Thomas Crooks purchased a ladder before plotting to assassinate former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. (Sarah Rumpf/FOX News Digital)
Other new details emerged in Wray’s testimony Wednesday: On the day he registered for the rally, Crooks had Googled “how far was Oswald from Kennedy.”
Wray also detailed Crooks’ cache of weapons, including two explosives found in his car near the Butler rally and one in his home.
Two FBI agents are searching the roof of AGR International, adjacent to the Butler Fairgrounds where gunman Matthew Thomas Crooks opened fire on former President Trump on July 13. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
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Wray said that based on his online activity, the 20-year-old Crooks “became very focused on former President Trump and his rallies” starting around July 6.
“This is obviously a significant search for his mental state,” Ray added.
