On August 28, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released new images and details related to Thomas Crooks, the subject who attempted to assassinate Mr. Trump at the former US president’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.

According to FBI officials, the 20-year-old gunman had researched former President Trump and his then-rival, incumbent President Joe Biden, more than 60 times before deciding to attend the Republican presidential candidate’s rally.

“Through our analysis of all of his [Thomas Crooks’] online searches, we found a detailed and ongoing effort to plan attacks on multiple events, which means that any event or target was being considered,” said Kevin Rojek, the FBI’s senior special agent in charge of western Pennsylvania. The perpetrator eventually “focused heavily” on the former President Trump event because he saw it as a “target of opportunity.”

According to Rojek, the location of Mr. Trump’s rally was only a 40-minute drive from the suspect’s home. Nearly a week before the event, Thomas Crooks focused on looking up information about the venue, weather conditions, where the former US president would speak, and even the company that owned the building chosen as the shooting site.

The FBI conducted nearly 1,000 interviews, and found that the perpetrator had a wide range of interests in explosives, major events and prominent political figures. However, investigators have not been able to determine the main motive for the assassination of Mr. Trump, because computer activity showed Thomas Crooks was interested in a variety of different ideologies. 

In addition, the FBI also stated that it did not find any evidence that Thomas Crooks worked with other subjects or was directed by a foreign power. The subject also showed no signs of using alcohol or stimulants before the time of the crime.

The attempted assassination also raised questions about how a gunman was able to climb a building near where Mr. Trump was speaking and fire eight shots before being killed by a Secret Service sniper. Several congressional and government investigations are looking into the reliability of security measures used at presidential rallies.

Meanwhile, in a recent interview with host Phil McGraw, former President Trump criticized the Biden administration for intentionally “making things difficult” so that he would have difficulty getting enough Secret Service protection for his campaign rallies.

However, Mr. Trump announced that he would still hold rallies of 50,000 to 60,000 people or more, and his team would continue to fight to ensure security at these events is guaranteed.

On August 28, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released new images and details related to Thomas Crooks, the subject who attempted to assassinate Mr. Trump at the former US president’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.

According to FBI officials, the 20-year-old gunman had researched former President Trump and his then-rival, incumbent President Joe Biden, more than 60 times before deciding to attend the Republican presidential candidate’s rally.

“Through our analysis of all of his [Thomas Crooks’] online searches, we found a detailed and ongoing effort to plan attacks on multiple events, which means that any event or target was being considered,” said Kevin Rojek, the FBI’s senior special agent in charge of western Pennsylvania. The perpetrator eventually “focused heavily” on the former President Trump event because he saw it as a “target of opportunity.”

According to Rojek, the location of Mr. Trump’s rally was only a 40-minute drive from the suspect’s home. Nearly a week before the event, Thomas Crooks focused on looking up information about the venue, weather conditions, where the former US president would speak, and even the company that owned the building chosen as the shooting site.

The FBI conducted nearly 1,000 interviews, and found that the perpetrator had a wide range of interests in explosives, major events and prominent political figures. However, investigators have not been able to determine the main motive for the assassination of Mr. Trump, because computer activity showed Thomas Crooks was interested in a variety of different ideologies. 

In addition, the FBI also stated that it did not find any evidence that Thomas Crooks worked with other subjects or was directed by a foreign power. The subject also showed no signs of using alcohol or stimulants before the time of the crime.

The attempted assassination also raised questions about how a gunman was able to climb a building near where Mr. Trump was speaking and fire eight shots before being killed by a Secret Service sniper. Several congressional and government investigations are looking into the reliability of security measures used at presidential rallies.

Meanwhile, in a recent interview with host Phil McGraw, former President Trump criticized the Biden administration for intentionally “making things difficult” so that he would have difficulty getting enough Secret Service protection for his campaign rallies.

However, Mr. Trump announced that he would still hold rallies of 50,000 to 60,000 people or more, and his team would continue to fight to ensure security at these events is guaranteed.