WASHINGTON — The shooter in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump allegedly flew a drone ahead of the Pennsylvania rally in an attempt to scout the location before the event, a law enforcement official said Saturday.
The drone has been recovered by the FBI, which is leading the investigation into Saturday’s shooting at the 20 year old Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Crooks fired multiple rounds from the roof of a building adjacent to the Butler Farm Show grounds, where Trump was speaking, before he was fatally shot by a Secret Service sniper. The existence of the device and its use at some point before the shooting could help explain why Crooks knew to fire from point-blank range.
The official who described the drone was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Details of the drone were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Trump said this week that a bullet hit his right ear. A memo released Saturday by the Trump campaign and written by Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson, who served as the GOP White House candidate’s physician, said Trump suffered a gunshot wound to his right ear from a high-powered rifle that “came less than a quarter inch from his head and struck the top of his right ear.”
One of the bullets aimed at Trump killed 50-year-old firefighter Corey Comperatorea spectator who was sitting in the stands. Two others were seriously injured.
The FBI continues to investigate what may have motivated Crooks to carry out the attack. So far, officials have found no ideological leaning that could explain his actions.
Investigators searching his phone photos of Trump foundPresident Joe Biden and other top administration officials, and also found that he had looked up the dates for the Democratic National Convention and Trump’s appearances. He also looked for information about the Great Depression.
More details about the investigation are expected to be released next week when FBI Director Chris Wray appears before the House Judiciary Committee.
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Associated Press editor Jill Colvin contributed to this report.