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From the Wall Street Journal: The gunman who tried to kill Donald Trump was able to fly a drone and get aerial footage of the western Pennsylvania fairgrounds shortly before the former president was set to speak there, law-enforcement officials briefed on the matter said, further underscoring the stunning security lapses ahead of Trump’s near assassination.
Thomas Matthew Crooks flew the drone on a programmed flight path earlier in the day on July 13 to scour the Butler Farm Show grounds ahead of Trump’s ill-fated rally, the officials said. The predetermined path, the officials added, suggests Crooks flew the drone more than once as he researched and scoped out the event site.
The 20-year-old would-be assassin fired at least six rounds from the roof of the American Glass Research building roughly 400 feet away from where Trump spoke, killing one spectator, critically injuring two others and leaving Trump with a graze wound to the ear. A Secret Service sniper team shot back, killing Crooks, whose motive remains a mystery.
The report shares additional chilling details of how Crooks meticulously planned his evil attack.
In recent months, Crooks had received multiple packages at his home marked “hazardous materials,” and conducted online searches for the dates of Trump’s rallies.
The Trump campaign announced on July 3 that they would be holding a rally at the fairgrounds in Butler, Pennsylvania, and Crooks registered for the event on July 7. He soon began researching the site, and visited the location to scope it out in advance.
On Saturday, July 13, the day of the rally, Crooks parked his car close to the fairgrounds. Inside the car he had a pair of homemade bombs, along with a ballistic carrier, or vest, with three, 30-round magazines in it, leading investigators to believe he planned even more carnage had he not been killed.
The Trump rally shooter used a drone to get aerial footage of the event site hours before the attempted assassination. https://t.co/OC8aGSlrQh https://t.co/OC8aGSlrQh
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) July 19, 2024
