Shocking new details reveal how Trump shooter evaded Secret Service and cops THREE times – with one agent even taking a photo of him – before opening fire from top of building with counter-sniper team inside
A team of police snipers saw Thomas Crooks scout their command post three times in the minutes before he climbed in and shot Donald Trump from just inches above their heads, it has emerged.
Three Beaver County police officers used the one-story AGR International building as their lookout when the would-be killer chose it as his shooting spot. CBS reported.
He was probably on the roof for 30 minutes before firing a series of shots Saturday night, killing one man and nearly killing the 45th president.
A law enforcement official told the station that no action was taken after one of the snipers first spotted Crooks looking up at the roof of the building in Butler, Pennsylvania, just 400 feet (120 meters) from where the president was scheduled to speak.
The 20-year-old disappeared around a corner before he was seen a second time. He sat down and looked at his phone, where one of the snipers took a picture of him.
Thomas Crooks was shot and killed by Secret Service agents on the roof of the police station, just 450 feet from where former President Donald Trump spoke Saturday night.
The 20-year-old would-be hitman was repeatedly seen and photographed by police officers before he scaled their building and opened fire
The sniper then radioed a command post after seeing Crooks pull out a rangefinder.
But no further action was taken until Crooks appeared a third time, this time carrying a backpack and disappearing from view as he walked toward the back of the building.
The sniper team radioed the information, but failed to realize that Crooks had now scaled their building.
Eight members of the Beaver County Police Department were tasked with securing the outer perimeter of the rally, while the Secret Service focused on the rally itself.
from Pittsburgh WPXI reported that a Beaver officer took a photo after seeing Crooks on the roof at 5:45 p.m. By that time, he had already been photographed by a colleague on the ground.
The last radio report from the three-man sniper team prompted state police to send reinforcements to the building. But it wasn’t until 6:11 p.m. that someone climbed onto the roof and saw Crooks with his rifle.
The Butler County officer was forced to retreat as Crooks pointed his AR-style weapon at him. Seconds later, the killer fired eight shots, killing Pennsylvania Fire Chief Corey Comperatore, critically wounding two others and hitting Trump in the right ear.
It is unclear whether Crooks had the rifle with him when he was first seen outside the AGR International factory building, or whether he remained on the roof the entire time.
A member of the public can be seen talking to a police officer before the shots rang out, the building where Crooks was sitting is on the right
Trump clutched his right ear as the first shots rang out at 6:12 p.m.
As Trump raised his fist to the crowd, some were heard cheering his name and chanting “USA” and “Make America Great Again”
But the shocking new allegations emerged as authorities and the U.S. Secret Service faced mounting questions about how Crooks was able to shoot the former president and kill a member of the protest crowd.
A terrifying video shows witnesses pointing to the roof and shouting at officers to warn them. MAGA fans also say they warned police about Crooks as he crawled to his shooting position, but he was still able to fire.
Police at the event in Butler, Pennsylvania, are being heavily monitored after it emerged that the roof had been identified as a “vulnerable point” for security.
Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said Monday night that she would not resign, despite growing calls to do so over the massive failings that led to one of the most horrific acts of political violence in history.
The local Pennsylvania sheriff defended the police officer who confronted Crooks on the roof seconds before the shooting.
Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe confirmed Monday that one of his armed officers encountered the shooter on the roof just before he wreaked havoc at the former president’s rally.
Slupe defended his officer’s decision to withdraw, telling KDKA he “would have done the same thing.”
“All I know is the officer had both hands on the roof to climb up, but he didn’t because the shooter turned toward the officer. And the officer rightfully and smartly let go,” Slupe added.
“I mean, people think the cops are superhumans, like you standing on the roof with one hand holding on for dear life and pulling out a gun. It doesn’t work like that.
Slupe also said that members of his department were aware of Crooks’ suspicious behavior before the meeting and immediately began looking for him.
Local police, not the Secret Service, searched the building, but Crooks was still able to climb up and take aim at the former president.
Slupe admitted that Crooks was in the “secondary protection ring” when he opened fire.
He said the Secret Service is responsible for the ring around the president, but local police will take control of the outer ring.
Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe insisted his deputy was right to retreat after would-be hitman Thomas Crooks pointed a gun at him seconds before the fatal shots were fired
Attendees claimed they alerted the Secret Service after seeing a man on the roof where the shooter was later killed
The 78-year-old former president survived the horrific assassination attempt when the bullet missed him by less than an inch on Saturday afternoon.
That happened eight minutes after he took the stage at 6:03 p.m. Eastern Time, where Trump began his speech and pointed to a large graphic in the same direction as the one that showed the shooter on the roof of an AGR International building.
Even before he took the stage, Trump’s supporters said they saw the gunman crawling across the roof with a rifle, but they said their warnings to the Secret Service were ignored.
“I thought to myself, ‘Why is Trump still speaking, why haven’t they taken him off the stage?'” one witness told the BBC. “The next thing you know, five shots go off.”
With the sun still high in the sky, Trump emerged at 6:03 p.m. to the sound of “God Bless the USA” blaring from the speakers. He continued to wave and fist pump at the crowd for several minutes.
Trump pulled out a large graph showing statistics about the migrant crisis at the southern border and told the crowd at 6:11 p.m., “That graph is a couple months old…”
“If you really want to see something sad, look at what happened,” Trump continued — before abruptly grabbing the side of his head as several “pops” were heard throughout the room where the event was taking place.
The 78-year-old fell to the ground in a flash as five more shots rang out in quick succession above his head, before four Secret Service agents rushed to the stage and dove on top of the former president.
Staggering footage shows Trump crouched on the ground as officers protect him, blood trickling down his cheek.
A timeline of the dramatic events that took place on July 13
Several Secret Service agents continued to storm the stage, while four heavily armed agents stood at the side of the stage, ordering those in attendance to “get down on the floor.”
The sniper, who was on an exposed rooftop 400 feet (120 meters) from the crowd, fired another shot at the stage a second later as Trump fans poured out of the stands.
Secret Service agents quickly tried to gain control of the chaos and surrounded the wounded former president before removing him from the stage.
Officers shot Crooks dead.