Chad Wolf, the former acting secretary of Homeland Security, told Newsmax on Wednesday that the various investigations into the shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, will likely not be complete for weeks, if not months.
The FBI on Wednesday released several new photographs from the agency's investigation into the attempt on former President Donald Trump's life during a rally in Pennsylvania last month, which show the gun used in the shooting as well as a backpack and explosives found in the suspect's car.
Wolf said on "American Agenda" that "the investigation is ongoing," adding that it's "a complex one."
He added, "What we've seen from a lot of lone individuals that take these types of actions in very public place ... is sometimes their motives are really unknown and only known to a few folks."
The special agent in charge of the investigation, Kevin Rojek, told reporters on Wednesday that the shooter had spent time researching Trump and President Joe Biden online before he "hyperfocused" on the Pennsylvania rally, which took place about a 40-minute drive from the shooter’s home. He also described the rally as a "target of opportunity" and said that the shooter did not appear to have a "definitive ideology."
"We saw through our analysis of all his — particularly his online searches — a sustained detailed effort to plan an attack on some events, meaning he looked at any number of events or targets," Rojek said. "And then, when this event was announced, the Trump rally was announced, early in July, he became hyperfocused on that specific event and looked at it as a target of opportunity."
Wolf predicted that investigators will continue to interview the shooter's family and friends, noting that "there's been over a thousand to date."
Wolf said the incident reminded him of "that devastating attack in Las Vegas several ... years ago."
"The motive for that event is still unknown. We still don't know why the shooter took those actions at that concert."
"So I think the we'll have to continue to wait for the investigation to play out, to see what other information they can find."
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Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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