New footage taken on the phone of Trump rally shooting victim James Copenhaver appears to show the would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks moving across the nearby rooftop just moments before he opened fire.
Former President Donald J. Trump was struck in the ear while Copenhaver and another man were wounded.
The video, taken at 6:08 PM on July 13 as Trump speaks on stage, shows the individual, believed to be Crooks, maneuvering across the gently sloped roof for over a minute.
The footage raises further questions regarding United States Secret Service protocols and why the former President wasn't removed from the stage when Crooks was in clear view of rallygoers and security personnel alike.
Acting USSS director Ronald Rowe, Jr. testified before a Senate joint-committee hearing, stating he was ashamed of the agency's failure in Butler, Pennslyvania.
"What I saw made me ashamed," Rowe said, adding: "As a career law enforcement officer and a twenty-five-year veteran with the Secret Service, I cannot defend why that roof was not better secured. "Last week, Federal Bureau of Investigation director Christopher Wray acknowledged to Congress that the would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to fly a drone over the rally site and live-stream footage to himself and possibly others.
This occurred just hours before Trump took the stage.
No comments:
Post a Comment