Trump Rally Shooter Identified

BUTLER, PA — President Donald Trump was injured on Saturday in what the FBI has officially called an attempted assassination during a shooting at the former president's campaign rally in western Pennsylvania.

A spectator was killed and two other spectators were critically injured, and the suspected shooter was "neutralized" after firing several shots, the Secret Service said in a statement Saturday night.

The FBI early Sunday named Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the shooter. The agency said the investigation remains active and ongoing.

Trump, in a statement released on Truth Social, said his upper right ear was pierced by a bullet.

"I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin," Trump wrote. "Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening."

The Secret Service said the shooter fired from "an elevated position outside of the rally venue" in Butler, Pennsylvania, about an hour north of Pittsburgh. An AR-style semiautomatic rifle was recovered at the scene, the Associated Press reported, citing a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation.

Authorities did not release the name or any information about the shooter during a news conference shortly before midnight Saturday. Kevin Rojek, a special agent with the FBI, said authorities had one shooter tentatively identified and that it was still too early to release it. They also were working to determine the shooter's motive.

"As soon as we are 100 percent confident who that individual is we will share it," he said. Authorities were using a variety of methods to confirm the man's identity, including DNA, biometric markers and other information, as the man was not carrying identification, they said, before releasing Crooks' name overnight.

The political leanings of Crooks were not immediately clear. Records show Crooks was registered as a Republican voter in Pennsylvania, but federal campaign finance reports also show he gave $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day President Joe Biden was sworn in to office.

Authorities declined to release the identities of the spectators who were injured and killed, except to say they were adult men. The injured were being treated at Allegheny General Hospital, CBS News Pittsburgh reported.

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) told Fox News that his nephew was among the injured, grazed in the neck by a bullet, Politico reported.

The FBI is leading the investigation into the shooting, the agency said Saturday night. Multiple law enforcement agencies were assisting, including the Secret Service and Pennsylvania State Police.

"The FBI, ATF, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and the Department’s National Security Division are currently working with the Secret Service as well as state and local law enforcement partners on the ground in Butler, Pennsylvania," U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said. "My heart is with the former President, those injured, and the family of the spectator killed in this horrific attack. We will not tolerate violence of any kind, and violence like this is an attack on our democracy. The Justice Department will bring every available resource to bear to this investigation."\

Special agents of the FBI Pittsburgh Field Office responded immediately, including crisis response team members and evidence response technicians, the FBI said. "We will continue to support this investigation with the full resources of the FBI, alongside our partners at the U.S. Secret Service and state and local law enforcement."

Anyone with video, audio, photos from the venue or other information about the shooting is urged to submit it at fbi.gov/butler or by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI, the FBI said.

This is the first assassination attempt on a president, current or former, since President Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981 by John Hinkley Jr. Read more: 4 US Presidents Were Assassinated; Others, Candidates Were Targeted

"There is no place in America for this kind of violence. It's sick," President Joe Biden said in a news conference from Rehoboth, Delaware, where he was spending the weekend. He returned to Washington in the wake of the assassination attempt. "The Trump rally should have been able to be conducted peacefully without any problem."

The shooting

Trump was speaking at the rally at the fairgrounds in Butler ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he is to be formally named the Republican candidate for president.

Butler is an hour north of Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania in an area that supported Trump in the 2020 election. Trump had been anticipated to possibly announce his vice presidential running mate at Saturday's rally.

The Republican National Convention will happen as scheduled beginning Monday, the Republican National Committee announced Saturday night.

"President Trump looks forward to joining you all in Milwaukee as we proceed with our convention to nominate him to serve as the 47th President of the United States," the statement said.

The shooting happened about 6:15 p.m., not long after Trump began speaking at the rally, the Secret Service said.

A video tweeted from the rally shows Trump reaching for his ear just after the first popping sounds are heard, and Secret Service members immediately covering him. The video captures the sound of at least three shots, then several more after Trump is covered by the Secret Service.

Snipers guarding the rally fired on and killed the shooter within seconds, authorities said at the news conference Saturday night.

Trump was seen holding his ear, with blood on the side of his face, as Secret Service agents were escorting him out of the venue to a medical facility. He was released from the facility around 10:30 p.m., according to reports, and ABC News reported he arrived in New Jersey aboard his private jet early Sunday.

"I want to thank The United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania," Trump wrote in his statement on Truth Social. "Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the Rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured."

"It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead," Trump wrote.

Richard Goldinger, the district attorney in Butler County, confirmed in a live interview on ABC News that the shooter had not been inside the rally venue but had fired from the roof of a building adjacent to the venue, meaning the shooter did not have to go through the rally venue security. Video tweeted from the scene shows what appears to be a dead body on top of a nearby building.

Security was being increased at Trump Tower and the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street in New York City in the wake of the shooting, city officials said according to a CBS News report. Security also was increased around his home in Mar-A-Lago, Florida, reports said.

In addition, federal authorities are working with the Trump and Biden campaigns and "are taking every possible measure to ensure their safety and security," said Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. "Maintaining the security of the Presidential candidates and their campaign events is one of our Department’s most vital priorities."

“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their quick action during this heinous act,” spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement, the Associated Press reported. “He is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility. More details will follow.”

Biden said during his news conference that he had been trying to call and speak with Trump personally, and was able to do so later in the evening, according to reports.

"I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well," Biden said in a statement released by the White House. "I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information. Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety."

"There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it," that statement said.

The Biden campaign was working to pull down and pause its campaign ads on Saturday night, ABC News reported.

Officials speak out

"Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable," said Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. "It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States. I have been briefed on the situation. @PAStatePolice are on the scene in Butler County and working with our federal and local partners."

Vice President Kamala Harris, who also was briefed on the assassination attempt, said "Doug and I are relieved that he is not seriously injured. We are praying for him, his family, and all those who have been injured and impacted by this senseless shooting."

"We are grateful to the United States Secret Service, first responders, and local authorities for their immediate action," Harris said. "Violence such as this has no place in our nation. We must all condemn this abhorrent act and do our part to ensure that it does not lead to more violence."

"Kelly and I are praying for President Trump and all the attendees of the campaign rally today in Pennsylvania, and we send our gratitude to the law enforcement who responded at the scene," House Speaker Mike Johnson tweeted. "I have been briefed by law enforcement and am continuing to monitor the developments. This horrific act of political violence at a peaceful campaign rally has no place in this country and should be unanimously and forcefully condemned."

Sen. Chuck Schumer tweeted, "I am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe. Political violence has no place in our country."

"As one whose family has been the victim of political violence, I know firsthand that political violence of any kind has no place in our society," Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, said. "I thank God that former President Trump is safe. "

The Associated Press contributed to this report.