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From the Daily Mail: A series of bombshell text messages from countersnipers who were supposed to protect Donald Trump at the Pennsylvania rally where an assassin’s bullet nearly killed the president showed them a step behind the gunman.
A massive inquiry has started in the wake of the attempt, which Trump miraculously survived, with the resignation of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle coming soon after the July 13 shooting.
Now, it appears a group chat of those meant to protect Trump were aware that gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was in their midst over 90 minutes before Trump was shot at, rather than an hour as the FBI had previously claimed.
From the New York Times: Nearly 100 minutes before former President Donald J. Trump took the stage in Butler, Pa., a local countersniper who was part of the broader security detail let his colleagues know his shift was ending.
“Guys I am out. Be safe,” he texted to a group of colleagues at 4:19 p.m. on July 13. He exited the second floor of a warehouse that overlooked the campaign rally site, leaving two other countersnipers behind.
Outside, the officer noticed a young man with long stringy hair sitting on a picnic table near the warehouse. So at 4:26 p.m., he texted his colleagues about the man, who was outside the fenced area of the Butler Fair Show grounds where Mr. Trump was to appear. He said that the person would have seen him come out with his rifle and “knows you guys are up there.”
The countersniper who sent the texts confirmed to The New York Times that the individual he saw was later identified as the gunman.
By 5:10 p.m., the young man was no longer on the picnic table. He was right below the countersnipers, who were upstairs in a warehouse owned by AGR International. One of the countersnipers took pictures of him, according to a law enforcement after-action report, which along with the texts from the Beaver County Emergency Services Unit was provided to The Times by the office of Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa. The text messages were independently verified by The Times.
Another text went out at 5:38 pm, which read, “Kid learning around building we are in. AGR I believe it is. I did see him with a range finder looking towards stage. FYI. If you wanna notify SS snipers to look out. I lost sight of him. Also a bike with a backpack sitting next to it in rear of building that was not seen earlier.”
“Call it in to command and have a uniform check it out,” the text continues.
The New York Times notes that the texts “reveal that the gunman, later identified as Thomas Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pa., aroused police suspicion more than 90 minutes before the shooting, rather than about 60 minutes, as has been previously discussed in congressional hearings.”
Copies of some of the chilling text messages are now being shared on social media:
BREAKING!🚨 Text messages from between @SecretService counter snipers from during the Butler, PA @realDonaldTrump rally have leaked out.
The texts CLEARLY show they were AWARE for 90 MINUTES before Trump took the stage that there was a suspicious kid with a rangefinder, and… pic.twitter.com/TliZkdi4HR
— The Patriot Voice (@TPV_John) July 29, 2024
Text messages, obtained exclusively by The Times, indicate that some law enforcement officers were aware of Thomas Crooks earlier than previously known. And he was aware of them. https://t.co/iK2syH0LnG
— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) July 29, 2024
