Donald Trump assassination bid: The pictures of former US President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden and other officials, including Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Chris Wray, were found on the phone of the 20-year-old man who attempted to assassinate the Republican leader at a Pennsylvania rally on July 13, according to two people familiar with the matter. Thomas Matthew Crooks, the shooter who was gunned down immediately by the Secret Service after the attack, looked up the dates for the Democratic National Convention as well as Trump's appearances, the investigators who searched the attacker’s devices, according to the people who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.
The attacker also search for “major depressive disorder,” according to three people familiar with the investigation. However, the investigators have yet not determined if he was actually diagnosed with the disorder, one of them said.
Studies have shown that the vast majority of people with mental illnesses are not violent, and experts say most people who are violent do not have mental illnesses.
What did the FBI say?
On a conference call with reporters on Sunday, Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the Pittsburgh field office, said: “We have no indication of any mental health issues.”
Investigators have been searching for any clues into what motivated Crooks to open fire at Saturday's campaign rally in an attempt to assassinate the GOP presidential nominee. The gunman killed one attendee and seriously wounded two others. Trump sustained an ear injury, however, he escaped death and was not seriously hurt. He appeared just days later at the four-day Republican National Convention in Milwaukee with a bandaged ear.
The FBI has said they were investigating it as a potential act of domestic terrorism, but the absence of a clear ideological motive by the man shot dead by the Secret Service has led conspiracy theories to flourish.
(With AP inputs)
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