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New information on the Donald Trump assassination attempt indicates that there were three law enforcement officers inside the building from which the would-be assassin, Thomas Crooks, fired his weapon.
Knewz.com has learned that serving as counter-snipers, these officers did not have the spotters required by standard operating procedure.
In an interview with the press, Secret Service Director, Kimberly Cheatle confirmed the latter.
“There was local police in that building—there was local police in the area that were responsible for the outer perimeter of the building,” she said.
Reports continue to mount – alongside the denial of responsibility for the building in question by Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe – suggesting that the building which was outside the magnetometer perimeter and fell under the purview of local law enforcement authority.
Butler Police officers have since come forward under the condition of anonymity claiming that a colleague – one of the snipers – spotted a man (presumably Crooks) with a rangefinder before the shooting.
This sighting was the second of three—the first being of Crooks studying the roof of the building and the third of him with a backpack headed toward the back of the structure.
All of this information was radioed to a command center which sent backup.
Crooks is believed to have scaled the roof with the help of a mounted air conditioner unit and was spotted by bystanders who reported him and his rifle to the police.
When the supporting officers responded, one climbed on the other’s shoulders to see onto said roof.
The police officer was spotted by Crooks as soon as his head cleared the edge, who then turned to cover him with his AR-15 rifle.
Said officer reflexively let go of the side of the building he was holding onto and consequently fell to the ground.
Crooks immediately turned his gun back on Trump and opened fire.
The 20-year-old shooter fired six shots, one of which nicked the former president’s right ear, while the others injured two supporters and killed another.
Before the police officers could get their wits about them a Secret Service sniper stationed behind Trump fired a single shot from over 400 feet away killing Crooks.
Images later showed the Butler County sheriff's deputy hauling the dead shooter’s body away.
Despite the mounting allegations of said law enforcement department being responsible for the building, it has denied responsibility.
A previous article by Knewz.com quoted Michael Slupe – who heads up the department – saying:
“No, the sheriff's office was not asked to do that [secure the building], and I don't know whose responsibility that would have been if that was in their plan.”
Notably, while some believe Slupe is a hero, others feel that he is responsible for Trump’s brush with death.
These diverging sentiments are seen on Facebook with one netizen saying: “You are a hero, sir! Thank you.”
Not happy with this demonstration of gratitude, another wrote:
“His team completely failed and nearly resulted in the assassination of a President and did result in the death of an American citizen. Hero??? You've got to be kidding.”