International
‘Fingers Being Pointed’: Secret Service’s Explanations For Security Failures Ahead Of Trump Assassination Attempt Aren’t Adding Up
![](https://www.todayville.com/calgary/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/07/tvrd-dc-trump-holding-ear-after-shot-image-2024-07-16.jpeg)
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
Secret Service’s explanations for the security failures surrounding the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump at a rally on Saturday aren’t adding up, according to security experts and former Secret Service agents.
Emerging details highlight what seems to be a disconnect between local officials and Secret Service, while making it more apparent that there were major oversights. Many key questions hinge on the responsibilities delegated to local police, who U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle confirmed during a Monday interview with ABC News were inside the building the shooter fired from, though nobody was stationed on the rooftop.
Cheatle explained a decision was made not to put anybody on top of the building because the “sloped” roof made it unsafe, but security experts and former Secret Service agents who spoke with the Daily Caller News Foundation emphasized not having someone on the roof was a “big failure” and didn’t believe Cheatle’s explanation was sufficient.
“Let’s just say the local law enforcement officers [and] the Secret Service agree that it’s just not safe to keep someone up there for a couple of hours,” former Secret Service agent Anthony Cangelosi told the DCNF. “Then the question is, well, how do we maintain its integrity otherwise? It’s not like you just throw your hands up and say ‘can’t do that.’”
Cangelosi said there is no “justifiable reason” for failing to cover the roof, suggesting they should have found solutions like putting another platform up or getting an officer on a lift.
Peter Yachmetz, retired FBI agent and principal security consultant at Yachmetz Consulting Group, pointed out that the shooter was moving around on the “unsafe” roof prior to the incident.
“The slope didn’t affect him,” Yachmetz told the DCNF.
JUST IN: USSS director Kim Cheatle says sn*pers weren't on the roof where Thomas Crooks shot from because it was "sloped" and unsafe.
Ironically, the sn*pers who were behind Trump during the rally were on a sloped roof.
"That building in particular has a sloped roof at its… pic.twitter.com/Vg36tXr9rJ
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 16, 2024
Law enforcement reportedly spotted the shooter on the roof 30 minutes before shots were fired, WPXI reported Monday. After the incident, a witness described watching a man climbing onto the roof and trying to warn a police officer, claiming officials responded with confusion.
“The reality is, regardless of the spin, that particular roof should have been under constant surveillance and or posted,” former secret service agent Tim Miller told the DCNF.
Here's video of the 20-year-old gunman, on the roof in a prone position, opening fire at the Donald Trump rally in Butler, PA.
Shots ring out and panic ensues before the shooter is himself shot and killed seconds later.
Video acquired by TMZ.
More: https://t.co/72O4XtmVwA pic.twitter.com/t6M8a09fbK— michael j. babcock (@mikejbabcock) July 14, 2024
“In this particular instance, we did share support for that particular site and that the Secret Service was responsible for the inner perimeter,” Cheatle told ABC News Monday during an interview. “And then we sought assistance from our local counterparts for the outer perimeter. There was local police in that building — there was local police in the area that were responsible for the outer perimeter of the building.”
However, a local law enforcement official told The New York Times Tuesday that the local forces were in an adjacent building, not the one the shooter was firing from.
The discrepancies in their accounts only add to the uncertainties surrounding who was responsible.
CBS News reported Monday that there were three snipers stationed inside the building shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks fired from, citing a local law enforcement officer. One of the snipers saw Crooks looking through a rangefinder in the minutes before he fired and radioed command post, according to CBS News.
The Butler Township Police Department declined to confirm the report to the DCNF, stating that there is an ongoing investigation by the FBI.
Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe declined to offer additional comments Tuesday, telling the DCNF he is “backing away from media requests for comment and opinions.”
“There are too many questions being posed that I do not have first hand knowledge of and too many fingers being pointed,” he said. “I am in charge of the Deputy Sheriffs and no other law enforcement agency. My Deputies performed their duties at their assigned areas and went above and beyond after the shooting started and ended in the their actions to help people and assist police in clearing the nearby buildings.”
Slupe previously confirmed to CNN that an armed Butler Township officer encountered Crooks before he shot at Trump, but retreated down the ladder after Crooks pointed his gun at him. He told KDKA-TV there was a security failure, but noted “there is not just one entity responsible.”
“The Secret Service plays a key role in protecting, in this case, former President Trump, but they don’t act alone,” he told the outlet. “The Secret Service receives support from local police departments.”
#NEW: CBS News just learned the image circulating online of the U.S. Secret Service counter sniper team is not the team that neutralized the gunman, per Secret Service spokesman. The sniper that killed Crooks with 1 shot was in yellow area on below diagram. @CBSNews @KDKA pic.twitter.com/XE1QEShR7P
— MEGHAN SCHILLER (@MeghanKDKA) July 16, 2024
Pennsylvania State Police, however, did confirm they had no members “inside the building or staging in it.”
“The Pennsylvania State Police provided all resources that the United States Secret Service (USSS) requested for former President Trump’s rally in Butler on Saturday, July 13th, including approximately 30 to 40 troopers to assist with securing the inside perimeter,” Pennsylvania State Police Lieutenant Adam Reed told the DCNF. “Among PSP’s duties at the rally, the Department was not responsible for securing the building or property at AGR International.”
Reed said he could not say when an officer witnessed the shooter, as it was not a state trooper who saw him.
WATCH: Trump raises fist to crowd after shots were fired at his rally in PA.
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) July 13, 2024
Former secret service agent Jeffrey James explained to the DCNF that protection “works in a series of concentric circles.” Typically, there is an inner circle of secret service agents, a second circle that mixes both agents and local law enforcement, and an outer ring that is largely state and local partners.
If the agent in charge of the site told a local law enforcement officer on the outer perimeter that the building is his responsibility, then anything that happens is on the officer.
“But if that agent didn’t find one of the local law enforcement partners and give very clear, direct directions…then it’s going to be the responsibility or the fault of that agent for not delegating that,” he told the DCNF.
It’s unclear what instructions the Secret Service gave to local law enforcement.
Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger told The Washington Post Tuesday that “Secret Service was in charge” and that “it was their responsibility to make sure that the venue and the surrounding area was secure.”
“For them to blame local law enforcement is them passing the blame when they hold the blame, in my opinion,” Goldinger told The Washington Post.
However, the Secret Service released a statement on Tuesday pushing back against assertions that they were blaming local law enforcement for the tragedy that unfolded on Saturday. “Any news suggesting the Secret Service is blaming local law enforcement for Saturday’s incident is simply not true,” the statement posted to the Secret Service’s X page said.
“I am having difficulty reconciling the answer the Director gave in her ABC interview with the official statement made on social media,” Patrick Yoes, national president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said in a press release on Tuesday. “Our goal is to provide whatever assistance the Secret Service needs to perform their mission and to do so with mutual respect, trust, and accuracy.”
A RealClearPolitics report suggested Sunday that resources were diverted away from Trump’s rally to an event where First Lady Jill Biden was speaking. Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the United States Secret Service, denied this was the case.
Questions also remain about why Crooks was not taken out sooner. Cangelosi explained to the DCNF that counter-snipers can face challenges due to their distance from the target.
“With counter snipers, you’re usually so far away, it’s not usually clear whether an individual is an imminent threat, ” Cangelosi said. “It’s harder to discern. Once they discern whether that person is a threat to life or serious bodily injury, they can take the shot.”
Yachmetz questioned why drone coverage was not utilized.
“A drone strategically placed a few thousand feet above could have oversaw the entire venue,” he said.
“In my opinion, a detailed, in-depth very specific investigation must be conducted of all procedures [and] this entire matter by a non-biased outside investigative group (possibly of retired agents),” Yachmetz told the DCNF, emphasizing the investigation must not be “politically motivated.”
House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer announced Monday that Cheatle would testify at a committee hearing on July 22. President Joe Biden said Sunday that he directed an “independent review” of the events.
The FBI told the DCNF it has “nothing additional to provide at this time beyond previously-issued statements.” The Bureau said Monday that it gained access to Crooks’ phone and “has conducted nearly 100 interviews of law enforcement personnel, event attendees, and other witnesses.”
Trump suffered a wound to his ear, and two were killed, including Crooks and 50-year-old ex-volunteer fire chief, Corey Comperatore. Two other attendees were also wounded the attack.
Secret Service did not respond to a request for comment.
Wallace White and Owen Klinsky contributed to this report.
Featured image credit: (Screen Capture/CSPAN)
Crime
Venezuelan Migrant Says She’d ‘Return’ To Country After Living In Housing Taken Over By Venezuelan Gang
![](https://www.todayville.com/calgary/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/tvrd-dc-venezuelan-gangs-take-over-appartments-denver-image-2024-09-07.jpg)
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Hailey Gomez
A Venezuelan immigrant living in migrant housing in Aurora, Colorado, appeared to fight back tears while speaking to independent reporter Nick Shirley, saying she would return to her country after living in the U.S.
This week, the city of Aurora faced major pushback from Republicans after footage surfaced online of armed men inside an apartment complex in late August. Shirley was seen visiting various migrant housing units before stopping at the viral location to interview residents where the armed men had been spotted.
Shirley spoke with a Venezuelan woman who showed him the poor living conditions her family endures, stating she pays $1,200 per month for the apartment. The migrant stated that the electricity and hot water in her apartment weren’t working, telling Shirley that the landlord hadn’t accepted any payment for the “past couple of months.”
“Does your father still have to pay rent?” Shirley asked as they walked around her father’s apartment.
“The owner is no longer receiving any kind of payment, because he is also taking all this, that the gangs and the mafia are taking advantage of all of this to get us out as if we were dogs and it’s not fair,” the migrant stated, according to a translation.
Shirley asked if gangs had been charging people, to which the migrant replied, “no.” The independent reporter then asked if her life in the U.S. was what she expected after crossing the border.
WATCH:
“No, never. I would have stayed in my country. They say that here everything is different, the laws, everyone gets a good job, you get ahead, you can save money to take back to your country,” the migrant stated. “But not everything is as they say, the American dream is simply just a dream. When you get here you wake up, it’s not like they say.”
Shirley then pressed the migrant, asking in Spanish if she would take a “flight or opportunity to go back” to her home country.
“With all the love in the world I would return to my country,” the migrant said.
Republican lawmakers on Friday sent a letter criticizing the Biden-Harris administration’s “open border policies” and local “sanctuary” policies over the reported presence of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which allegedly terrorized several apartment buildings in Aurora.
Reportedly beginning as a prison gang in 2014 within the northern Venezuelan state of Aragua, Tren de Aragua has grown into one of Venezuela’s largest criminal organizations. With around 5,000 members and stretching internationally across Latin America and the U.S., the gang has allegedly been connected to several high-profile crimes within the U.S., including the kidnapping and strangling of a Florida man last year.
This week, the Aurora Police Department announced the arrest of two confirmed Tren de Aragua gang members, Jhonnarty Dejesus Pacheco-Chirinos and Jhonardy Jose Pacheco-Chirinos, following a July 28 shooting that left two men hospitalized with serious injuries.
International
ISIS supporter used Canada in terror plot to massacre New York City Jews, motivated by October 7th Hamas attack on Israel: FBI
![](https://www.todayville.com/calgary/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/09/tvrd-bureau-islamic-state-image-2024-09-07.jpg)
News release from The Bureau
United States investigators disrupted the anti-Semitic terror plot of a 20-year-old Pakistani citizen residing in Canada, who was preparing to cross the U.S.-Canada border to carry out a mass shooting at Jewish religious centers in New York City. His aim was to unleash bloodshed on October 7, 2024, marking the anniversary of Hamas’ deadly incursion from Gaza into Israel.
According to an FBI complaint on September 4, 2024, Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, an ISIS supporter, was en route to the border, having told undercover agents he had secured funding for the operation—even texting a photo showing stacks of Canadian currency—and bragging he was “locked and loaded” for the attack.
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Undercover officers and informants had infiltrated the suspect’s network in Canada, intercepting online and encrypted communications, gathering months of evidence that detailed his plans to target Jewish civilians and religious institutions in Brooklyn. Khan believed the city’s large Jewish population made it the perfect site to inflict maximum casualties.
“Brothers, hear me out, why not we do an attack in New York,” Khan texted to FBI agents. “[The] population of Jews in New York City is 1 million,” he continued, explaining he had scanned Google Earth maps of various New York neighborhoods and could see “tons of Jews walking around,” and “we could rack up easily a lot of Jews.”
Khan’s murderous intentions weren’t limited to a single attack in New York City. The FBI’s complaint alleges he sought to form an “offline cell” of ISIS supporters in the U.S., coordinating multiple assaults on Jewish targets.
And demonstrating his intent and some level of sophistication in terror financing and money laundering, Khan discussed plans to fund and arm ISIS operators in the United States with AR-style rifles through cross-border cryptocurrency accounts.
This disrupted ISIS-related plot comes amid broader fears in the U.S. about the risks posed by Canada’s immigration policies. Recently, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio expressed concern over Canada’s acceptance of Palestinian refugees from Gaza. In a letter to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Rubio warned that the refugee program could increase the risk of individuals with ties to terror groups gaining easier access to the U.S., complicating efforts to secure the border.
The FBI’s investigation also highlights the resurgence of ISIS-linked terrorism in North America.
The group and its affiliates have claimed responsibility for major attacks worldwide, including the November 2015 Paris attacks that killed 130 people, the 2016 Brussels bombings that left 32 dead, and the Nice truck attack, which killed over 80. More recently, ISIS-linked groups carried out bombings in Kerman, Iran, in 2024, killing 94 people, and a deadly assault on a concert hall in Moscow that same year, which claimed at least 60 lives.
The FBI’s case against Khan, filed three days ago in the Southern District of New York, alleges that he began discussing his plan in July 2024 with undercover agents he believed to be fellow ISIS supporters.
He initially considered targeting “City-1,” but dismissed it as insufficient, stating, “City-1 is nothing compared to NYC” because it had “only 175k Jews.”
On July 31, 2024, Khan elaborated on his vision of a coordinated attack, telling the undercover agents he envisioned six attackers splitting into three teams to “launch three attacks simultaneously on different locations, maximizing the casualty count.”
Khan continued to communicate with the undercover agents throughout August, referencing a failed ISIS attack in Toronto as evidence of law enforcement vigilance and urging heightened caution. He emphasized that their “cell should be small and well-armed” and that they should avoid social media to stay under the radar.
To enter the U.S., Khan arranged for a human smuggler to help him cross the border from Canada, planning to travel to New York City and then by bus to his attack location.
By early September, Canadian authorities began tracking Khan’s movements. On the morning of September 4, 2024, RCMP officers observed Khan entering a vehicle in Toronto, traveling toward Napanee, Ontario. After transferring to a second vehicle with a new driver, Khan continued eastbound toward Montreal, intending to cross the U.S.-Canada border from Quebec.
His plans became more detailed as he neared his attack date. He identified Jewish religious centers in Brooklyn, sending the undercover agents a photograph of a specific area inside one center where he intended to carry out the attack. He also urged the agents to acquire firearms, ammunition, and tactical gear, instructing them to purchase “some good hunting [knives] so we can slit their throats.”
Khan intended to time his assault with Jewish religious events, ensuring maximum casualties, and planned to record a video pledging allegiance to ISIS and send it to the group’s media outlet, Amaq, to claim responsibility.
The evidence also provides chilling insight into the psychology and beliefs that drive ISIS supporters. On August 18, Khan sent the undercover agents a document urging them to read it, explaining that “a martyr bypasses all this questioning of the grave etc.”
U.S. and Canadian authorities continue to investigate the case and assess whether Khan had any additional accomplices or links to other extremist networks.
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