FBI Identifies Shooter At Trump Rally: 20-Year-Old Thomas Matthew Crooks

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks as the shooter behind the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump, it said in a statement on Sunday.

Crooks, 20, was killed by security officials when he opened fire at the 78-year-old Republican presidential candidate during his campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

Trump said he "was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear."

Law enforcement officials earlier told reporters they had tentatively identified the suspected shooter but were not ready to do so publicly. They also said they had not yet identified the motive.

The FBI, which is the lead federal law enforcement agency in the investigation, had said the shooting was being treated as "an assassination attempt" against the former president.

The shocking incident occurred less than four months before the November 5 US presidential election, when Trump is set to face an election rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden.