Trump assassin’s father called police about his son before attack

The father of the assassin who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump called the police before the shooting on Saturday because he was worried about his son, according to media reports.

The call is one of several red flags that have emerged in recent days and that law enforcement was notified about before shots rang out at Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday. Law enforcement agencies – particularly the U.S. Secret Service – are facing increasing questions about security as some lawmakers have called for the agency’s chief to resign.

Matthew Crooks’ father called police because he was concerned about his son and his whereabouts, a law enforcement source told BBC news partner CBS. It’s unclear when the call was made, but it was before the shooting.

It is unclear what his father told police. Fox News reported that Crooks’ parents, Mary and Matthew, told officers they were “concerned” about their son and that he had disappeared without notice.

His parents are both cooperating with the investigation, the FBI said.

Law enforcement sources have told US media that the shooter was searching the Internet for severe depressive disorder and the Democratic Party convention scheduled for August.

According to reports in the Washington Post and the Associated Press, he also stored images of Trump, President Joe Biden, Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Chris Wray and a member of the British royal family.

Investigators are still trying to determine a possible motive for the 20-year-old gunman who was shot and killed by Secret Service snipers after he opened fire, killing one bystander and injuring several others.

The preliminary investigation has determined that Crooks climbed to the roof of a nearby building outside the rally by climbing on top of an air conditioning unit located next to the building, the unnamed official told CBS.

According to testimony from members of Congress briefed by law enforcement this week, a counter-unit sniper had alerted U.S. intelligence to a suspicious man using a rangefinder about 20 minutes before the attack began.

A rangefinder is an instrument that can be used to measure the distance to a target.

Local police spotted the gunman, who was behaving strangely and carrying a backpack, about an hour before the shooting. They lost him in the crowd, but he was spotted again by the sniper.

Officers were alerted by radio about a suspicious person and searched the area where Crooks had placed his rifle on a roof.

When an officer found no one there, he decided to check the roof. The officer was hoisted onto the roof by a colleague and came face to face with the suspect, Butler Township Manager Tom Knights told CBS.

The suspect pointed a gun at him and the officer, who was in a “defenseless” position, let go of the roof and fell to the ground.

He then alerted others to the shooter. Moments later, the shooting began.

When Crooks appeared in the crowd, police did not see a weapon and are now trying to figure out how no one saw his AR rifle.

Investigators are considering various theories, including that he hid it near the air conditioning units earlier in the day or that he somehow managed to smuggle it in his backpack.

To understand the sequence of events surrounding the shooting, it is crucial to retrace his steps in the hours before the attack, officials say.

Officials told CBS that Crook’s father legally purchased the semi-automatic rifle he used in 2013.

When the shooter was found, he was carrying a remote detonator and there were explosives in his car, law enforcement sources told US media.

It remains unclear what the motive for the attack was and whether political ideologies are behind it.