The FBI announced Sunday that the shooter at Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania acted alone, and they are actively investigating his background, including efforts to access his phone.
“We are working to get access to the phone,” said Kevin Rojek, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office. “We have shipped the phone to our lab at Quantico.”
Rojek mentioned that the FBI has “not identified an ideology associated with the subject,” but emphasized that “we’re still very early in this investigation.”
Currently, the FBI does not have detailed information on the shooter’s actions immediately before the incident. The shooter’s family has been cooperative in the investigation.
Rojek confirmed the gun used was a legally purchased AR-style rifle and that a “suspicious device” found in the suspect’s car has been “rendered safe and is being analyzed.”
Bobby Wells, assistant director of the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C., stated that the FBI is investigating this as an assassination attempt and a potential domestic terrorist attack.
Rojek indicated that “at this time we have no indication of any mental health issues.” He encouraged the public to provide any information they have, noting that the FBI has already received over 2,000 tips.
FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate mentioned an increase in individuals online mimicking or posing as the shooter, who is now deceased.
Attorney General Merrick Garland reported that he spent the morning in briefings with DOJ personnel and “briefed President Biden in the Situation Room” on the investigation.
“The violence we saw yesterday is an attack on democracy itself,” Garland said. “This must stop.”