- Trump rally shooter identified as 20-year-old Pennsylvania man
- Attendee who was shot in head appeared to be caught in crossfire, witness says
Former President Donald Trump was injured Saturday in an assassination attempt when a gunman opened fire at his campaign rally, killing one spectator and bloodying Trump’s ear.
The shooter, who appeared to take an elevated position on a rooftop outside the venue, is dead. Another two spectators were critically injured. Trump’s campaign said he was safe.
FBI Special Agent Kevin Rojek said during a midnight press conference that law enforcement is not prepared to identify the suspected shooter yet. Rojek said investigators have not yet identified a motive.
In a harrowing and chaotic scene, Trump was about six minutes into his remarks in western Pennsylvania when pops of gunfire rang out. The Republican presidential contender grabbed his right ear and then got to the floor, where he was immediately swarmed by Secret Service agents who piled on top of him to protect him.
The agents then helped Trump to his feet, surrounded him, and rushed him off stage and to a waiting vehicle. Trump — with blood on the side of his head and his ear — repeatedly pumped his fist in the air and waved as the crowd cheered.
Trump said in a post on Truth Social about 2½ hours later that a bullet “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,” Trump wrote. “Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening.”
Trump thanked law enforcement in his online statement and extended condolences to the families of the people killed and injured.
“It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country,” he wrote.
The shots were fired from outside the Secret Service security perimeter for the rally, according to three senior U.S. law enforcement officials.
Source: NBC