O attempted assassination of former President Donald Trumpwho is running for re-election, is fueling a series of false claims and conspiracy theories as authorities seek information about the 20-year-old gunman’s background and motives, how he obtained the AR-style rifle he fired at Trump and security at the scene. who was unable to stop the shooting.
Here’s a look at the facts.
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Online Posts Falsely Claim Shooter Was Instructed Not to Shoot Trump Shooting Suspect
CLAIM: A police sniper assigned to Saturday’s Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, says the head of the Secret Service ordered him not to shoot the suspect accused of trying to assassinate Trump.
THE FACTS: No such order was made. Shooters killed the alleged shooter moments after he opened fire on the former president, bleeding Trump’s ear, killing a rally participant and wounding two. The Secret Service and Butler Police Department say they have no agents, officers or employees with the name of the person they claim is the shooter.
Following Saturday’s attempt on Trump’s life, a poster on the online message board 4chan wrote that they were a designated shooter for the rally and can be seen in a photo of two police officers on the roof of the rally.
“My name is Jonathan Willis,” the poster wrote. “I came here to inform the public that I had the killer in my sights for at least 3 minutes, but the head of the secret service refused to give the order to remove the criminal. 100% of the top brass stopped me from killing the assassin before he shot President Trump,” the post stated.
But there is no agent or officer named Jonathan Willis working for the Secret Service or Butler police, and no Internet record of such an officer could be located.
A Secret Service spokesman said snipers are trained and instructed to act whenever they see a threat and do not wait for instructions before firing to neutralize a suspect. He said he could not discuss the details of the agency’s communication or the details of the ongoing investigation, but said the post was false.
Witnesses at the rally alerted authorities to the suspect, identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, after seeing him perched atop a nearby roof. A local police officer went up to the roof and found Crooks, who pointed his rifle at the officer. The officer retreated down the stairs and the gunman quickly fired at Trump, authorities said. That’s when US Secret Service gunmen shot him, authorities said.
Crooks, an employee at a suburban Pittsburgh nursing home, fired several shots at Trump with an AR-style rifle. One spectator died and two others were seriously injured.
Authorities have said the shooting was an assassination attempt, but have not yet determined what motivated Crooks to try to kill Trump, the AP reported.
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Posts distorted photo to claim that Trump was shot in the chest and saved by a bulletproof vest
CLAIM: A photo shows a bullet hole in Trump’s jacket, proving he was shot in the chest during the assassination attempt.
THE FACTS: The photo in fact, it shows a fold in the jacket of a Secret Service agent protecting Trump. Another image from the Associated Press taken moments earlier clearly shows that there is no hole in Trump’s jacket. What appears to be a hole may shrink as the agent moves in video the consequences of the shooting.
Social media users are sharing the photo of the assassination attempt claim that the former president was shot in the chest. Some posts suggest he survived because he wore a bulletproof vest.
In the image, what appears to be a small hole appears inches below Trump’s right armpit. Many posts use an enlarged version of the photo that has a circle around the supposed hole to emphasize hard-to-notice details.
“#Trump was also shot in the chest,” says one post X. “The bulletproof vest saved him #We support Trump.
Another post X says similarly: “It appears Trump was shot in the chest as the bullet appears to have pierced his suit; he was wearing a bulletproof vest.”
But the apparent hole is actually a crease in the Secret Service agent’s jacket sleeve, not the result of a bullet.
The photo taken by a AP Photographer shows the agent hunching over as she protects Trump, her jacket appearing slightly darker than the former president’s. The fold can be seen following the edge of the agent’s jacket, from her neck to just below her left shoulder.
Furthermore, another AP image taken moments before the one with the alleged hole clearly shows the right side of Trump’s jacket as he raises his fist. No holes can be seen in the jacket.
Trump wrote on his social media platform that he was “shot by a bullet that pierced the top of my right ear.” Photos and videos from the rally show blood on his right ear and the right side of his face.
The Secret Service declined to comment on details of the shooting, including where the bullets struck, and did not respond to a subsequent inquiry into whether Trump was wearing a bulletproof vest. The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
CLAIM: A photo of the assassination attempt of Trump shows Secret Service agents smiling as they surround him after the shooting.
THE FACTS: The photo was edited to give the impression that the agents were smiling. In the originaltaken by a Associated Press photographerthe same agents can be seen with neutral expressions.
After the shooting, Social media users shared the altered image, with some suggesting it was proof the assassination attempt had been staged.
The photo shows Trump with blood on his face and ears, raising his fist in front of an American flag as Secret Service agents surround him. Three agents whose faces are visible appear to smile as they protect the former president.
“Why are all three Secret Service agents smiling, at least that’s how it seems to me,” reads one post on X. “Given the gravity of the situation, I would think their expressions would be grim and determined. Now, if it were a staged event, these expressions would make more sense.”
But the agents weren’t smiling at that moment. The photo has been edited to look different.
The original image shows the same three agents with neutral expressions. One man is positioned behind Trump, a second man is at his left shoulder and a woman is hunched over his right side, beneath his raised arm.
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Find AP fact checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.
