An FBI meeting with former President Donald Trump reportedly included their rationale behind referring to his would-be assassin as “strikingly intelligent” with mention of an “undiagnosed disorder.”
Nearly a month after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania wounding three, including the president, and taking the life of Corey Comperatore, investigators had yet to assign a motive.
Now, sources told ABC News, an FBI sit down with the GOP leader included their impression of the gunman whom they referred to as “strikingly intelligent” having scored over 1500 on his SAT pre-college exam.
Described as a “standard victim interview,” the president was said to have asked more questions of law enforcement officials than they of him as they made their case that Crooks’s ability to “name every U.S. president, from George Washington to the present day” was representative of a “high level of intelligence” during their 90-minute meeting.
Additionally, ABC News noted how the FBI had raised concerns about an “undiagnosed disorder,” and detailed, “Trump was told that, through interviews with Crooks’ family and others who knew him, investigators learned that throughout high school, Crooks would routinely sway back and forth while standing at the bus stop — but that Crooks never received any sort of formal diagnosis related to it, according to the sources.”
“Sources said the law enforcement officials also told Trump that they are still unable to say exactly what motivated Crooks to target Trump at the July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania,” the report added.
The report came as the Butler Township Police Department had released footage from the bodycam worn by the officer who had attempted to climb up on the roof where the would-be assassin had been moments before firing on the president.
“F*ck, this close, bro. Dude he turned around on me,” the officer had said as he recounted to other officers what he had spied along with Crooks, including the rifle and “boot bag next to him.”
‘F*ck, this is close’: New bodycam footage shows immediate aftermath of Trump assassination attempt https://t.co/TebwnXtSpJ
— BPR (@BIZPACReview) August 9, 2024
Meanwhile, prior to his Thursday press conference at Mar-a-Lago where he had confirmed his meeting with the FBI and said they had “done a very good job,” Trump was said to have questioned the agency about potential connections to foreign nations.
“The FBI agents told Trump that they were able to access three foreign email accounts used by Crooks because his passwords were stored on his computer, but they have found no indications that anyone else was involved in the attack,” ABC News reported from their sources and that the information was “largely related to weapons and ammunition purchase, offering little insight into what drove Crooks to launch his attack, Trump was told.”
Other information relayed included the would-be assassin’s activity on the day of the rally, how he had purchased the weapon from his father months earlier, and when it was that security had spotted the gunman on the roof with a weapon — “about 30 seconds before Crooks opened fire.”
That claim went along with their acknowledgment that they had been aware of a suspicious person that day.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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