Butler Police Department has released over two minutes’ worth of video showing officers responding to the dramatic scenes of Thomas Crooks opening fire on US President Donald Trump.
ADVERTISEMENTNew bodycam video footage released on Thursday shows the moments before the assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on 13 July.
The footage released by the Butler Police Department shows the moment when a police officer spotted the gunman on the roof, seconds before he attempted to kill Trump.
The video, which can be seen in the player above, shows a Butler Township Police officer hoisted onto the roof where the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, had taken position.
The officer gets a boost from another officer to get on the building but quickly drops. He then runs to alert other officers that he saw the gunman and heads to his patrol car to retrieve his gun, according to police reports.
This segment of the body cam footage was released without sound by the police department. Crooks opened fire and hit Donald Trump 39 seconds later, according to police.
Shots grazed the ear of the former president, killed volunteer firefighter and father of two Corey Comperatore, and injured two more rally-goers.
«He turned around on me,» the officer who tried to climb on the roof yells to another officer after getting his weapon and struggling to catch his breath.
«Who’s got eyes on him? He was right where you picked me up, bro. He was on the left side.»
Within seconds, more law enforcement officers from different units are seen approaching the building. Later in the footage, officers can be seen standing around the deceased body of Crooks who was fatally shot.
In another video obtained by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), a frustrated officer says that he had asked the Secret Service days before to station men on the roof from which Crooks shot Trump.
«I told them they need to post guys over there,» he said, according to the WSJ. «I told them that [on] Tuesday.»
«I talked to the Secret Service guys, they were like, ‘Yeah, no problem, we’re going to post guys over here,'» the officer added.
The Secret Service has said it is reviewing all the footage and the FBI and a bipartisan House panel are also investigating the incident.
