Trump Agrees to FBI Interview in Assassination Attempt Investigation

Donald Trump has agreed to participate in an FBI interview as part of an investigation into the assassination attempt against the former U.S. president, according to an official. Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office, stated that the agency is seeking “to get [Trump’s] perspective on what he observed.”

The former president and 2024 Republican presidential nominee will sit for a standard victim’s interview, which Rojek described as being “consistent with any victim interview we do.”

Trump was shot in the ear during a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13, prompting widespread condemnation and scrutiny over the event’s security measures. Witnesses reported that the alleged gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, positioned himself on a rooftop with a clear view of the rally stage. One person was killed and two others were seriously injured in the shooting.

FBI officials have not yet determined a motive for the attack but noted that Crooks had researched previous mass shooting events, improvised explosive devices, and an attempted assassination of the Slovakian prime minister in May.

U.S. lawmakers have called on law enforcement agencies to clarify their security protocols for the rally, with the FBI treating the incident as an act of “domestic terrorism” and attempted assassination. FBI Director Christopher Wray assured a congressional hearing that the agency would leave “no stone unturned” in the investigation.

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned amid the fallout, accepting full responsibility for the security lapse and stepping down from her position.