Heart-stopping moment secret service snipers shoot suspected Trump gunman

A statement has been issued

The Presidential candidate was shot at during the rally in Butler, and said he was hit in the “upper part of my right ear” and “much bleeding took place”.

Footage shows the moment that Secret Service agents opened fire on the gunman, just a few moments after the first sounds of gunshots could be heard.

The shooter had taken up 'an elevated position outside of the rally venue', according to the Secret Service.

One spectator at the event was killed, with two more being critically injured.

Heart-stopping moment secret service snipers shoot suspected Trump gunman

The FBI have identified the alleged shooter as 20-year-old Pennsylvania resident Thomas Matthew Crooks, and say that their investigation is ongoing.

“The FBI has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the subject involved in the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump on 13 July, in Butler, Pennsylvania,” they said in a statement.

“This remains an active and ongoing investigation.”

Witnesses told the BBC they saw a man with a rifle crawl onto a roof while Trump was speaking.

“We noticed a guy crawling… up the roof of the building beside us, 50 ft away from us,” they told the outlet.

Video captured by a helicopter over the rally in Butler shows a man lying on a roof with what appears to be a rifle next to him.

A second video circling social media, taken on the ground by a member of the public, shows a man wearing camouflage-style clothing lying on top of the roof.

Witness tells BBC he saw gunman on top of a building located just outside Trump rally

Follow updates https://t.co/QvX8HL6tJf pic.twitter.com/nEEMhEF9m7

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) July 14, 2024

In a statement after the shooting, Trump said: “I was shot with a bullet that 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.

“Much bleeding took place, so I realised then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”

The 78-year-old has since left hospital and returned home to New Jersey.