Drone Used in Attempted Assassination of Trump: FBI Investigates

The attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump involved a drone flown around the rally site beforehand, according to law enforcement. The FBI recovered the drone and continues to investigate the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was fatally shot after firing at Trump. More details are expected next week.

A drone was flown around the Pennsylvania rally site in an apparent attempt to scope it out before the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, a law enforcement official revealed Saturday.

The FBI, which is leading the investigation, recovered the drone. Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old shooter, fired multiple rounds from an adjacent building's roof before being fatally shot by a Secret Service counter sniper. The drone's use before the shooting might explain Crooks' decision to fire from that vantage point.

Trump has stated that a bullet clipped his right ear. A memo from his campaign indicated he sustained a wound from a high-powered rifle that narrowly missed entering his head, while one bullet killed a firefighter in attendance. The FBI is still probing Crooks' motives, with no ideological connections found so far.

Photos of Trump, President Biden, and other officials were found on Crooks' phone, along with searches related to major depressive disorder. More details will be disclosed when FBI Director Chris Wray testifies before the House Judiciary Committee next week.

(With inputs from agencies.)