Former United States President Donald Trump has agreed to be interviewed by the FBI about the recent assassination attempt at his rally in Pennsylvania.
The FBI announced on Monday that the interview will be “a standard victim interview we do for any other victim of crime.”
FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek explained, “We want to get his perspective on what he observed.”
The attack occurred on July 13 when Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, fired shots at the rally. Despite reviewing extensive evidence, the FBI has not yet determined why Crooks targeted the event.
Newly released text messages show that Crooks was seen by a local SWAT team more than 90 minutes before the shooting, which is earlier than previously known. These messages could highlight security failures before the attack.
Rojek noted that Crooks had conducted “careful planning” before the rally, including buying parts for explosive devices.
“He made significant efforts to hide his activities, which would have raised the suspicions of his parents,” Rojek said.
Several investigations are looking into what went wrong with the security at Butler Fair Show grounds on July 13. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned after acknowledging failures in the security setup.
On the day of the shooting, the Secret Service was responsible for security within a fenced area, while local law enforcement covered areas outside the fence. Text messages from a local police sniper showed that Crooks was noticed at a picnic table before moving to a warehouse.
The sniper sent a message saying, “Someone followed our lead and snuck in and parked by our cars just so you know.” Later, Crooks was seen using a range finder and carrying a backpack.
At 18:11, Crooks was confronted by a local police officer just before he fired eight shots at Trump and the crowd.
The FBI believes Crooks had been conducting “early surveillance” of the site on July 11, two days before the rally.
The new text messages suggest that Crooks had been a concern to law enforcement much earlier than previously reported. Witnesses had also spotted him on the roof and alerted authorities.
The reasons for the breakdown in communication between local law enforcement and the Secret Service are still unclear. Members of the local SWAT team reported they had no contact with the Secret Service, and a planned face-to-face briefing did not occur.
