The bodycam footage obtained by Fox News Digital shows two officers from the Butler Township Police Department attempting to intercept Thomas Matthew Crooks on a roof seconds before he allegedly tried to assassinate former President Trump at a campaign rally last month. The officers made a desperate attempt to stop Crooks moments before he fired his DPMS AR-15 rifle, striking former President Trump in the ear, killing Corey Comparatore, and injuring two others.
Crooks pointed his weapon at the officer who scaled the building before ultimately losing his grip on the roof’s edge and falling about eight feet to the ground, spraining his ankle. The video does not capture Crooks, but it shows the intense moments leading up to the assassination attempt.
The security breaches that allowed the shooting to occur have sparked finger-pointing among various agencies involved at the local, state, and federal levels. Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe acknowledged a “failure” in the security measures that allowed someone to move along a roof minutes before the shooting.
The FBI revealed that Crooks had driven to the rally site at 11 a.m. on the day of the shooting and spent an hour there before heading home. He returned to the scene around 3:50 p.m. and flew a drone about 200 yards away from where Trump was going to be speaking. However, the FBI found no photos or videos taken from the drone and no memory card present.
Local law enforcement officers spotted Crooks for the first time around 5:10 p.m., approximately 50 minutes before Trump took the stage. By 6:12 p.m., Crooks opened fire on the rallygoers and was killed by a counter-sniper. The officers who interrupted Crooks likely provided enough of a distraction to save Trump’s life, according to Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe. The interruption bought Trump the crucial seconds he needed to turn his head, narrowly avoiding a fatal shot.
The bodycam footage sheds light on the intense moments leading up to the assassination attempt and the swift actions taken by law enforcement to prevent further tragedy. Additional security measures and coordination among agencies are crucial to preventing similar incidents in the future.