The recent release of bodycam footage has shed new light on the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump last month at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The footage appears to show the suspect, identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, on the roof of a building just minutes before he fired his weapon.
According to Fox News, the footage, released by the Butler Township Police Department, shows a figure believed to be Crooks moving across the roof of the American Glass Research (AGR) complex building at 6:08 p.m. The police officer whose bodycam captured the footage was patrolling the east side of the AGR complex near the water tower when he spotted the figure.
The footage also shows another figure, likely a fellow officer, walking on the ground in the opposite direction of Crooks, seemingly oblivious to the shooter's presence on the roof. The officer's bodycam footage then shows him communicating with other officers and patrolling the adjoining car park. The footage, however, does not have sound.
The FBI has previously stated that Crooks accessed the roof of a building by climbing up HVAC equipment and piping. He then traversed multiple rooftops before he found his shooting position on top of a building about 150 yards from where the former president spoke at his rally.
Investigators have determined that Crooks purchased a ladder hours prior to the assassination attempt, but he left it at his residence in Bethel Park and did not use the ladder at the rally. No ladder was found at the scene.
The newly released video corroborates Crooks' timeline in a video by James Copenhaver, one of the victims shot. That video also shows a figure maneuvering on the rooftop.
Crooks managed to fire eight shots in his attempt to assassinate Trump, according to a preliminary report released by Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., last week. One bullet grazed Trumps right ear, while firefighter Corey Comperatore was fatally struck. Rally-goers James Copenhaver and David Dutch were also shot and injured.
Another shot was fired by a Butler SWAT operator from the ground, about 100 yards away from the AGR building. The shot hit Crooks rifle stock and fragged his face and shoulder area due to the stock breaking up, Higgins said.
Another shot was fired by the southern Secret Service counter-sniper team, which entered Crooks' left mouth area and exited the right ear area.
In a chilling development, new video footage has been released showing Crooks casually walking through a crowd in Butler, Pennsylvania, nearly two hours before the shooting. The short clip, released by the clothing company Iron Clad USA, shows Crooks at 4:26 p.m. dressed in shorts and a "Demolitia" T-shirt walking past a line of vendors selling Trump merchandise ahead of the July 13 rally, not carrying anything. He was wearing the same T-shirt when he opened fire on Trump.
Text messages sent by local law enforcement responsible for monitoring former President Trump's Pennsylvania flagged Crooks to colleagues as suspicious at least 90 minutes before he opened fire. The messages, obtained by Fox News Digital via Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who obtained them from the Beaver County Emergency Services Unit, showed that officers flagged Crooks after he was spotted using a range finder but did not approach him.
The release of this footage and the subsequent analysis provides a chilling insight into the events leading up to the attempted assassination. It underscores the need for constant vigilance and the importance of swift and effective law enforcement response in such situations.
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