PITTSBURGH – The FBI is looking to interview former President Trump after he survived an assassination attempt as part of their investigation into the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, according to a federal law enforcement source.
Agents are seeking a victim impact statement, which is a routine step in such a case, the source told Fox News.
Crooks climbed on top of a building overlooking Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.
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Authorities approach the suspected gunman from where he fell after the U.S. Secret Service returned fire after an apparent assassination attempt on former President Trump. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
He eluded law enforcement on the ground, aimed his gun at a police officer who peeked onto the rooftop and then turned and opened fire.
He fatally struck 50-year-old father of two Corey Comperatore and seriously wounded David Dutch, 57, and James Copenhaver, 74.
Trump later said he had been shot in the right ear, and photos from the scene showed him with blood on the right side of his head.
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Republican presidential candidate former President Trump is surrounded by U.S. Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The FBI is still looking into Crooks’ motive.
FBI Director Christopher Wray testified on Capitol Hill this week, revealing some of the information investigators have been able to glean off of Crooks’ phone and laptop.
He was researching prior presidential assassinations and searched Google for the phrase, “how far away was Oswald from Kennedy?” on the same day he registered to attend the rally.
Former President Trump arrives at the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on Wednesday, July 17, 2024. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Thomas Matthew Crooks is alleged to be the shooter in the assassination attempt on former President Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, July 13, 2024. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
“Starting somewhere around July 6 or so, he became very focused on former President Trump and this rally,” he said.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, the FBI said the investigation into Crooks was a top priority.
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FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Dec. 5, 2023 in Washington, D.C. Wray returned to Capitol Hill this week to testify on a Pennsylvania man’s attempted assassination of former President Trump. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
“Since the day of the attack, the FBI has been consistent and clear that the shooting was an attempted assassination of former President Trump which resulted in his injury, as well as the death of a heroic father and the injuries of several other victims,” a spokesperson said.
“This was a heinous attack and the FBI is devoting enormous resources to learn everything possible about the shooter and what led to his act of violence. The FBI’s Shooting Reconstruction Team continues to examine evidence from the scene, including bullet fragments, and the investigation remains ongoing.”
