FBI releases new photos and details of Trump shooting probe, finding gunman had

Washington — The FBI on Wednesday released four new photos from its investigation into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, as well as new information about what the bureau has learned about the shooter.

The FBI’s investigation into the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 remains ongoing, and the bureau said it has still not identified a motive or evidence that the gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, worked with any others.

Kevin Rojek, head of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office, told reporters during a briefing that investigators “believe [Crooks] engaged in detailed attack planning.”

Rojek said Crooks became “hyper-focused” on Trump’s campaign rally in Butler once it was announced, and the FBI found a “mixture of ideologies” associated with the gunman. Crooks was shot and killed by a Secret Service sniper after he fired eight bullets. Trump was wounded when he was shot in the ear, and two rally attendees were injured. One person was killed in the shooting.

“When this event was announced, the Trump rally was announced, early in July, he became hyper-focused on that specific event and looked at it as a target of opportunity,” Rojek said.

Beginning in late September 2023, an online account tied to Crooks was used to search for Trump campaign events scheduled in Pennsylvania, Rojek said. From April 2024 through July 12, the gunman searched for information on campaign events for both Trump and President Biden. Once the Trump rally was announced in Butler, he searched for specifics about that venue, including “Butler farm show podium,” according to Rojek.

About a month before the attack, the shooter searched for topics related to Trump and Mr. Biden, including the dates for the Democratic and Republican conventions.

As early as 2019, accounts tied to Crooks searched for explosive devices including “detonating cord,” “how to make a bomb from fertilizer” and “how do remote detonators work,” Rojek said.

FBI officials have determined that some antisemitic comments online are tied to an account associated with Crooks and they are working to determine if he himself posted that language, according to Rojek.

In addition to shedding light on Crooks’ actions leading up to the attack, the FBI provided details about what transpired during the shooting. Rojek said Crooks was on the roof of the AGR building for six minutes before he opened fire. He reiterated that the gunman fired eight shots, and said law enforcement fired two: one round from the Secret Service sniper and one from a local officer. 

Rojek said there is no evidence to suggest Crooks was hit by the local officer’s bullet and no second gunman shooting at Trump.

As part of its investigation into the attack, the FBI spoke with Trump and said his interview was “productive.” Investigators have also sought information from Crooks’ parents, who Rojek said has been “extremely cooperative.”

The new FBI photos

The new details coincided with newly released photos showing some of the evidence the FBI has collected in its probe.

The first photo shows Crooks’ rifle, which was recovered from the shooting site. The firearm was an AR-style rifle made by DPMS Panther Arms and had an extendible rear stock and an optical sight attached to the rail, the FBI said.

The second photo from the FBI shows Crooks’ disassembled rifle, pictured alongside a backpack he was seen wearing at the site of Trump’s rally. FBI Director Chris Wray told House lawmakers last month that Crooks’ gun had a collapsible stock, which he said could explain why rally attendees didn’t see him with it.

Wray said the first people at the rally who saw Crooks with a gun observed him when he was on the roof of the AGR building, where he opened fire.

The third photo released by the FBI was taken by the Allegheny County Police Department and shows two improvised explosive devices that were discovered in the trunk of Crooks’ car.

The FBI said the receiver that would have allowed Crooks to detonate it remotely was turned off, and the “devices had several problems in the way they were constructed.”

Wray testified before Congress that the FBI recovered a total of three “relatively crude” devices: two from Crooks’ vehicle and one from his residence.

The fourth and final photo from the FBI is an image of the air conditioning unit that officials said Crooks’ used to gain access to the roof of the AGR building. The photo is not an evidence photo, but was taken during a tour of the rally site in the days after the assassination attempt, according to the FBI. 

The bureau said Crooks climbed on the white unit on the far right side of the image.