Gunman behind attempted assassination on Trump had head blown off by Secret Service, sources say; rally-goer killed
The gunman suspected in the attempted assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump Saturday was shot and killed by Secret Service, sources told The Post.
The shooter, identified only as a white male, was in an elevated sniper position located hundreds of yards away from Trump’s podium in Butler, Pa. as he spoke to a campaign crowd, sources said.
Bullets rang out in the middle of his remarks, Trump putting his hand to his right ear before being tackled to the ground by Secret Service agents.
Seconds later, Trump rose to his feet and told his security detail to “wait” before pumping his fist and shouting “fight” to the badly shaken crowd.
“He came within inches of having his face shot open,” a senior law enforcement source told The Post.
The gunman has not yet been identified because it appears he wasn’t carrying identification on him, sources said. He was not an attendee at the rally.
An AR-style rifle was recovered at the scene, sources told the Associated Press.
At least one attendee is also dead, a local prosecutor said. Two spectators were critically injured, Secret Service said.
Bystander footage captured in the aftermath of the gunfire shows what appears to be a deceased man in light-colored military fatigues splayed out on a rooftop a few hundred feet from the rally stage.
BBC News interviewed several Trump supporters outside the event who described seeing a suspicious person “bear crawling” up the roof of a nearby building ahead of the shooting.
“He had a rifle — you could clearly see him with a rifle, absolutely,” said one man, describing the suspect getting into position.
He claimed his group, who was about 50 feet away from the structure, frantically tried to point out the man to nearby cops but said it “didn’t seem like they knew what was going on.”
The witness said the armed man was positioned on the roof “3-4 minutes” before he started firing.
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“Next thing you know, five shots rang out,” he said.
He also said he saw the moment the Secret Service fired the fatal shots that took the gunman’s life.
“They blew his head off. The Secret Service blew his head off,” the supporter told the outlet.
Elon Musk posted BBC News’ interview on X, blasting the Secret Service for their allegedly slow response, writing, “The head of the Secret Service and the leader of this security detail should resign.” the Tesla CEO wrote.
Earlier, Musk posted, “I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery.”
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest on the assassination attempt of former President Trump
Saturday’s attack marked the first assassination attempt of a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.
It came just days before Trump is to be officially named the Republican nominee at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
With Post wires
Editor’s Note: In a version of this article on July 13, the Post erroneously reported that the shooter was a Chinese man, based on wrong information we obtained from sources. We quickly corrected the mistake. We sincerely apologize for the error.
