About how Thomas Crooks brought a DPMS AR-15 rifle to the roof of the AGR Building in Butler, Pennsylvania, last Saturday, ahead of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, now the 2024 Republican president Unnoticed, there are now two viable theories for the nominee.
Crooks either hid his father’s rifle near the air conditioning unit he used to climb to the roof of the AGR building or placed it in the backpack he was found carrying, according to a federal law enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation. Along with a golf rangefinder.
Former President Thomas Matthew Crooks stands in front of the Butler Fairgrounds after the assassination attempt on July 14, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Bethel Park School District/Getty Images)
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However, sources say concealing the rifle in a backpack would require extensive disassembly and reassembly of the rifle, and it is more likely that Crooks hid the rifle behind an AC unit.
Fox News reported that Crooks purchased the ladder and ammunition the morning of the rally. However, federal law enforcement sources said no ladder was found at the scene, leading to speculation that Crooks grabbed the rifle, climbed onto the air conditioning unit and then climbed onto the roof.
Undated file photo of Thomas Matthew Crooks. Crooks was the alleged gunman who assassinated former President Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Obtained by Fox News Digital Channel)
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We also now know that the unit inside the building was a sniper team from the Butler Township Emergency Services Unit, who were conducting “surveillance” of the activity. The team was at the event, peering out of the building’s windows for any suspicious activity, while Crooks snuck onto the roof above them.
Undated archival photo of Thomas Matthew Crooks in yearbook photo. Crooks was the alleged gunman who assassinated former President Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Obtained by Fox News Digital Channel)
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Fox News also reported that the agent desk sniper who killed Crooks fired only one shot.
