Body camera footage released by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Thursday shows the police response to the rooftop where sniper Thomas Crooks took up sniping position during the assassination attempt on former President Trump.
The video shows Beaver County Emergency Services officers and U.S. Secret Service agents approaching the roof where Crooks fired an AR-15 style rifle while Trump was speaking to supporters in Butler, Pennsylvania, where one spectator was killed and Trump and two other supporters were injured at the Republican presidential candidate’s rally.
“Body camera footage from July 13 provides more information than the Secret Service has released. [with] “America needs urgent, detailed answers about our security failures. Transparency brings accountability,” Senator Grassley said in a post on X.
The senator said his office obtained the video from Beaver County ESU at the request of the Legislature.
FBI reveals how Thomas Crooks got the gun used in Trump assassination attempt
Beaver County Emergency Services officials investigate the roof of the building where suspect Thomas Crooks shot former President Trump (left) and recover the rifle used by the suspect (right). (Beaver County ESU obtained by Senator Grassley)
Shortly after the assassination attempt, video shows ESU police officers and Secret Service agents running towards the gunman and rushing to the roof of the AGR building where the shots were fired.
On the roof, a trail of blood can be seen leading to the body of 20-year-old Thomas Crooks. An AR-15 style rifle and shell casings are next to him. One officer on the roof counted at least eight shell casings.
Officers searching Crooks’ body found a mobile phone and a transmitter.
“It is a remote control device. It is grey in color and is approximately five or six inches tall,” the officer reported.
Trump shooter wasn’t the only suspicious person at Butler rally: Pennsylvania State Police chief
Officials responding to the attempted assassination of former President Trump exchange information. (Beaver County ESU obtained by Senator Grassley)
Officers who responded were concerned there may be an explosive device near the scene.
“Tell the FBI to hurry up,” one of the officers says.
FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday and revealed new details about the explosives found in Crooks’ car and home.
Wray said investigators found three explosive devices believed to belong to Crooks — two in his vehicle near the Butler rally and one inside his home. Wray described the devices as “relatively crude” but said they were rigged for remote detonation and still posed a significant threat.
Body cameras: Law enforcement at Trump rally ‘lost sight’ of gunman before shooting
After Beaver County Emergency Services officials discovered Thomas Crooks’ body, they showed officers U.S. Secret Service information stored on his cell phone. (Beaver County ESU obtained by Senator Grassley)
The FBI director also confirmed that the bureau had access to Crooks’ phone but said the investigation was hampered by his regular use of encrypted messaging apps.
Ray said the investigation has not ruled out the possibility that Crooks may have conspired with one or more co-defendants.
Senator Grassley arrives to attend a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on judicial nominations on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on September 6, 2023. (Drew Ungerer/Getty Images)
According to Ray’s testimony, no one saw Crooks with a rifle before he went up to the roof of the AGR, and the gunman had used a folding stock, which made the gun easier to conceal, the director said.
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FBI agents found and recovered the drone that Crooks used to spy on the area where Trump’s rallies were being held, and Wray said the drone and controller were in Crooks’ vehicle at the time of the shooting.
Investigators believe Crooks flew the drone near the rally between 3:50 and 4:00 pm on the day of the rally, flying within about 200 yards of the stage during the flight.
Anders Hagstrom of Fox News Digital contributed to this update.
