FBI says it is investigating Trump shooting as ‘potential domestic terrorism’

Republican US presidential candidate former president Donald Trump is helped off the stage at a campaign event after being shot in his ear, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/ Gene J. Puskar)
Republican US presidential candidate former president Donald Trump is helped off the stage at a campaign event after being shot in his ear, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/ Gene J. Puskar)

The FBI says that the attempt to shoot Donald Trump is being investigated as a potential act of domestic terrorism, adding that the shooter acted alone and had no known ideology.

“We are investigating this as an assassination attempt, but also looking at it as a potential domestic terrorism act,” Robert Wells, assistant director of the FBI counterterrorism division, tells reporters.

The gun used in the attempted assassination was an “AR-style 556 rifle” that was purchased legally, FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek tells reporters.

Authorities believe the semi-automatic weapon was bought by the shooter’s father, but do not yet know how he accessed the weapon or whether he took it without his father’s knowledge, the FBI says.

The FBI says it has not yet identified any ideology ascribed to the shooter, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was shot dead by Secret Service agents yesterday.

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