Trump rally shooter flew drone to scope out event site hours before opening fire: report

The 20-year-old may have flown the drone near the event site multiple times

The 20-year-old who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump last week flew a drone over the Butler, Pennsylvania rally site hours before the former president took the stage.

Thomas Matthew Crooks sent the drone over the site the morning of July 13, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing law enforcement officials briefed on the shooting.

He used a pre-programmed flight path, which officials said may mean he used the drone more than once to scope out the area, according to the Journal.

Crooks also received several packages labeled as containing “hazardous materials” and performed Google searches for Trump rally dates as well as for President Joe Biden and next month’s Democratic National Convention, the Journal reports.

Trump was set to hold a rally on Saturday evening, his first since he was injured by Crooks’ gunfire last week. The 20-year-old, who was fatally shot by Secret Service agents, killed one rally-goer and injured two others.

Law enforcement agents stand at the Butler, Pennsylvania rally site where Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire, injuring two attendees and killing one (Getty Images)

The Secret Service has faced significant backlash from Republicans in the wake of the shooting.

GOP lawmaker Jim Jordan claimed the agency was grappling with “limited resources” ahead of the assassination attempt. Meanwhile, Marsha Blackburn and her GOP senator colleagues confronted Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle at the Republican National Convention this week, demanding answers on the assassination attempt.

Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi has pushed back on theories that the agency could have done more in the lead-up to the assassination attempt.

Guglielmi also said claims that the Secret Service rebuffed a request from the Trump team for additional security were “untrue” and theories that an event for First Lady Jill Biden diverted resources were “very wrong.”

Trump, sporting a bandaged ear, described the attempt on his life at the RNC on Thursday night.

In the convention’s longest-ever speech, the former president said he is“grateful” for his life.

“There was blood pouring everywhere, and yet in a certain way I felt very safe because I had God on my side,” Trump said near the beginning of his 93-minute address.