'This is crazy': Outrage as report suggests Thomas Crooks fired from building housing counter-sniper team

Trigger Warning: This article contains some graphic information and content that may trigger some readers. Discretion is advised.

BUTLER, PENNSYLVANIA: A local police counter-sniper team was situated inside the AGR International Inc factory in Butler, Pennsylvania when attempted assassin Thomas Crooks climbed onto the roof and fired on former President Donald Trump, law enforcement sources informed the New York Post.

Local law enforcement officials were using the building as a “watch post” for snipers to scan for threats as the former POTUS spoke onstage just 130 yards away.

Sources disclosed that although officers were inside the building, they were not on the roof during the shooting.

Crooks managed to climb the building without anyone stopping him and proceeded to fire eight shots with an AR-style assault rifle, grazing Trump's right ear and resulting in the death of one Trump supporter while injuring two others.

What did law enforcement sources say about Saturday’s lapse in security during former President Trump’s address?

The information was disclosed as local news station WPXI reported that the gunman Thomas Crooks had been seen on the building some 26 minutes before he began shooting, and a police officer of the Beaver County Emergency Services Unit even took a photo of the attacker before he opened fire.

As of Monday night, law enforcement sources were uncertain whether any of the local officers responsible for securing the perimeter outside the Butler County Farm Show grounds could alert Secret Service agents about the attacker.

A police officer from the Butler Township Police Department climbed on another officer's shoulders to examine the roof of the building just before the shooting began but backed off when Crooks aimed his rifle at him.

A Butler City Police dispatcher told the outlet that the Pennsylvania State Police were assigned to secure the AGR grounds.

Several local police agencies were responsible for securing the area outside of the Butler Farm Show grounds where the 78-year-old ex-president spoke. Secret Service representative Anthony Gugliemi pointed out that local agencies were in charge of the area from where the shooter opened fire.

According to law enforcement sources, the building was thoroughly searched by police before the event, and the local sniper team used the large manufacturing site as a setup and lookout post.

However, they did not go onto the roof for the event, possibly due to concerns that it might interfere with Secret Service snipers.

Neighbors near the farm show grounds claimed that they had not been contacted by law enforcement to help with security in the days leading up to the event, and photos from the area depicted gates into the facility where the shooter entered being simply tied with zip-ties.

"Nobody contacted me. Nobody. Nobody called me, nobody stopped here," said Valerie Fennell, whose property borders both the farmlands and the AGR factory.

The state police had previously mentioned that while they are routinely called in to assist when politicians visit the area, the Secret Service ultimately holds the responsibility.

State Police Lt Col George Bivens asserted, “Secret Service always has the lead on securing something like this.”

Video footage from the rally seemed to show the Secret Service counter-sniper team, who fatally shot Crooks, aiming their rifles at him well before he fired at the former president. However, it is uncertain whether they had seen him.

The Butler City Police indicated that the AGR grounds were not within their jurisdiction.

Internet appalled as reports suggest local counter-sniper team was inside building from where Trump shooter opened fire

People online lambasted the Secret Service and local law enforcement officials for being incompetent and blameshifting onto each other following the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump during his Pennsylvania campaign rally last week.  

One X user remarked, "How can there have been such a complete breakdown of the security like this?? It’s unacceptable!!"

Another user asked, "That kid outsmarted the fbi, ss, and the police. He knew exactly where to go and found the soft spot. What are the odds?"

Another user wrote, "This just gets worse every time there is an update to the story."

One user questioned, "Why would a sniper team be inside at all? Was this like communications HQ? If it's hq why not have eyes around that building?"

Another X user argued, "C’mon now, all this isn’t adding up. Complacency I get, but this is crazy."

Finally, this user tweeted, "Because sitting inside, on the ground floor, in the AC, is the perfect spot for a counter sniper team to protect the event."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.