Pittsburgh – The FBI is considering interviewing former President Donald Trump, who survived the assassination attempt, as part of its investigation into suspected shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks, according to federal law enforcement sources.
Investigators are seeking victim impact statements, which is standard procedure in such cases, sources told Fox News.
On July 13, Crooks climbed to the roof of a building overlooking a President Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
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After the U.S. Secret Service returned fire during the assassination attempt on former President Trump, authorities approached the suspected shooter from the spot where he fell. (Source: Fox News Digital)
He eluded police on the ground, pointed his gun at officers looking onto the roof, then turned and fired again.
He fatally injured the 50-year-old father of two. Corey Comperatore David Duch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74, were seriously injured.
Trump later said he was shot in the right ear, and photos from the scene showed him with blood on the right side of his head.
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Republican presidential nominee and former president Donald Trump is surrounded by U.S. Secret Service agents during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Saturday, July 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The FBI is still investigating Crooks’ motives.
FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before Congress this week, revealing some of the information agents were able to glean from Crooks’ cellphone and laptop.
He had been researching past presidential assassinations and on the day he registered for the rally, he Googled the phrase “how far was Oswald from Kennedy?”
Former President Trump arrives at the Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wednesday, July 17, 2024. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Trump shooting: A timeline of the assassination attempt
Thomas Matthew Crooks is the alleged perpetrator of the attempted assassination of former President Trump on Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Source: Fox News Digital)
“Starting around July 6, he started paying very close attention to former President Trump and this rally,” he said.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, the FBI said the investigation into Crooks is a top priority.
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FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Hart Senator’s Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2023. Director Wray returned to Capitol Hill this week to testify about the attempted assassination of former President Trump by a Pennsylvania man. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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“From the day of the attack, the FBI has consistently and unequivocally maintained that this shooting was an attempted assassination of former President Trump, resulting in the wounding of the president, the death of a heroic father, and the injury of several other victims,” the spokesman said.
“This was a heinous attack, and the FBI is dedicating enormous resources to learning everything possible about the shooter and what led to this violent act. The FBI’s shooting reconstruction team continues to examine evidence at the scene, including bullet fragments, and the investigation is ongoing.”
