'It was an inside job': Widow of man killed shielding Trump rejects FBI's lone-shooter finding

BUTLER, PENNSYLVANIA: Two years after Corey Comperatore was fatally shot while shielding his wife and daughters during the attempted assassination of then-candidate Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, his widow is publicly rejecting the FBI's conclusion that gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks acted alone.

In an interview with NewsNation, Helen Comperatore said she believes the July 13, 2024, attack was "an inside job" involving people within the government, though she did not present evidence to support the allegation. 

Her comments come as questions surrounding the security failures at the rally continue to draw public attention despite the FBI's conclusion that Crooks acted alone.

Widow rejects FBI's conclusion

Speaking to NewsNation's Rich McHugh, Helen Comperatore said she does not accept the FBI's findings that Crooks acted alone.

"I believe it was an inside job, inside the government somewhere," she said when asked what she believes happened.

When McHugh asked whether she had evidence supporting that claim, Comperatore replied, "I've been told things," adding that certain events after the shooting led her to "put the pieces together."

While she alleged Crooks had help, she clarified that she does not believe there was a second shooter at the rally.

"I don't believe there was another shooter there, but I believe he was working with somebody," she said.

Family says questions remain

Comperatore also criticized the pace of the investigation, with NewsNation reporting that the Secret Service did not interview her until roughly a year after the shooting.

She said she will only find closure when "the people who put this all together that day are caught."

Her comments directly contradict the FBI's investigation, which concluded after interviewing thousands of witnesses and reviewing extensive evidence that Crooks acted alone in carrying out the attack before being fatally shot by Secret Service agents.

The bureau has also rejected accusations from some conservative groups that it withheld information about the investigation.

Message directed at Trump

Corey Comperatore, a former volunteer fire chief, was the only person killed during the Butler rally shooting after he shielded his family from gunfire. Trump was struck in the ear, while two other rally attendees were wounded.

Asked if she had a message for the president, Helen Comperatore urged Trump not to forget the victims' families.

"Don't forget us and remember what we went through that day," she said. "We're still here. We need answers."

Although she challenged the government's conclusions, Comperatore did not name any officials or identify who she believes may have been involved.

To date, investigators have not publicly disclosed evidence linking any other individual to the assassination attempt, and the FBI continues to maintain that Crooks acted alone.