By Joanna Putman
Police1
BUTLER, Pa. — Newly released body camera footage shows officers and Secret Service agents on the roof where an attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump occurred during a rally on July 13, WTAE reported.
The video, shared on social media by Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley on July 23, was obtained from the Beaver County Emergency Service Unit after requests from Congress, according to the report.
The footage appears to show the suspected shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, lying dead after being shot by Secret Service personnel. Nearby, local law enforcement officers are seen huddling with a man believed to be a U.S. Secret Service agent. The timestamp at the start of the video is 7:08 p.m.
“So, this is the guy?” the agent asks, to which the officer wearing the body camera confirms. “Beaver County snipers seen him, sent the pictures out,” the officer says.
Grassley and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., introduced legislation July 23 to require Senate confirmation for future Secret Service directors, the Associated Press reported. This move follows the resignation of Kimberly Cheatle as director, prompted by bipartisan calls for her to step down.
Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher Paris testified before Congress on July 23, stating that Butler Emergency Service Unit had alerted state police about Crooks’ suspicious behavior, which was then communicated to the Secret Service, according to the WTAE report.
The Associated Press also reported that local officers involved in the response saw the gunman acting suspiciously on the ground and left their posts to look for him before the shooting occurred. Paris stated in his testimony that the officers were posted at a second-floor window before leaving to search for Crooks.
