A security guard at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, first became aware of the man who shot Trump more than 90 minutes before the shooting, according to a text message. The New York Times reportedThis further fueled criticism of the Secret Service’s handling of the incident.
Local counter-snipers first spotted the shooter, Thomas Crooks, at 4:26 p.m., just over an hour and a half before he climbed onto a nearby roof and shot Trump, cutting his ear, killing one supporter and wounding two others in the crowd.
An officer near the end of his shift texted a colleague about a suspicious man sitting at a picnic table near the lookout location, and an additional text message from about 5:40 p.m. shows officers discussing calling the Secret Service after Crooks was spotted, this time using a rangefinder.
“Notify command and have uniformed personnel inspect the area,” the document states.
The series of security failures that allowed Crooks to get into position to shoot Trump shocked Congress and sparked House and independent investigations. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned last week after being grilled by the House Oversight Committee about the assassination attempt.
Police at the scene were unable to find Crooks again after learning he was near the building he later climbed. Shortly after Trump took the stage at 6:03 p.m., members of the crowd pointed out a suspicious man on a nearby rooftop.
FBI Director Christopher Wray testified last week that a Butler police officer was lifted onto a roof to confront Crooks, who held him at gunpoint, and, unable to grab his own gun to fight back, the officer ducked to avoid being shot.
Wray said “just seconds later” Crooks fired eight shots at Trump, who was quickly shot dead by a Secret Service counter-sniper team.
The motive for the shooting is unclear, but investigators found that Crooks, who is believed to have suffered from depression, had been seeking out several possible targets, including President Biden, before targeting Trump.
The new details push back the timeline of when Crooks was first seen, previously thought to be about an hour before the shooting.
“The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders, and on July 13th, we failed,” Cheatle said at an oversight committee hearing last week. “As director of the United States Secret Service, I accept full responsibility for any security failures.”
“We must learn from what happened, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that an incident like July 13 never happens again,” she continued. “I cannot stop thinking about what we should have done differently.”
