New York: Former US President Donald Trump was injured in what the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) confirmed as an “assassination attempt” during his Presidential campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday evening, officials said.
Trump, who was rushed out of the stage with a bloodied face, is “safe”, the Secret Service said. The former US president said on social media that he was shot with a bullet that pierced “the upper part of my right ear”. His campaign team said Trump was “fine”.
The gunman and at least one member in the audience were killed, the US Secret Service said in a statement.
“One spectator was killed, two spectators were critically injured. The incident is currently under investigation and the Secret Service has formally notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” the statement said.
“A suspected shooter fired multiple shots at former President Trump’s campaign rally … from an elevated position outside the venue,” the Secret Service said.
“U.S. Secret Service personnel neutralised the shooter who is now deceased. U.S. Secret Service quickly responded with protective measures and the former president is safe and being evaluated,” the statement added.
The FBI termed the shooting an “assassination attempt” against Trump, CNN reported.
“This evening, we had what we’re calling an assassination attempt against our former President Donald Trump,” the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office Kevin Rojek, told a news conference in Butler.
The FBI identified the gunman as Thomas Matthew Crooks, and said he fired multiple shots from a building rooftop just outside the rally venue, before being killed by Secret Service agents.
He said a probe was on to find the motive behind the assassination attempt.
US President Joe Biden, who was in Delaware, denounced the violence, and spoke to Trump after the shooting. the White House said.
“Tonight, the President is returning to Washington DC. Tomorrow morning at the White House, he will receive an updated briefing from homeland security and law enforcement officials,” a White House official said in a statement.
Biden in a statement said he was grateful that Trump was “safe and doing well”.
“I have been briefed on the shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania. I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well. I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information.”
“Jill (Biden, US First Lady) and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.”
Trump on his social media platform Truth Social said, ‘I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realised then what was happening.’
It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead, he added.
Trump’s campaign issued a statement announcing that he is “fine” after the “heinous act”, and thanked law enforcement and first responders for their quick action.
According to CNN. a witness claimed he told officers that he saw a gunman moving “from roof to roof,” minutes before the assassination attempt. UNI
