The US Federal Bureau of Investigation says the man who shot and injured former President Donald Trump last month planned the attack in detail by repeatedly searching online for information on potential targets.
Trump, the Republican nominee for November’s presidential election, suffered a bullet wound at a campaign rally in the eastern state of Pennsylvania on July 13.
The gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, was shot dead on the spot.
The FBI on Wednesday released photos of the rifle he used, and explosives and other items found in his car.
The bureau said Crooks had searched campaign events for both Trump and President Joe Biden since April.
It noted that in the 30 days prior to the attack, Crooks conducted more than 60 searches related to Trump and Biden.
He also looked for information on explosive devices, including how to make a bomb from fertilizer and how remote detonators work, as early as September 2019.
An FBI agent said Crooks engaged in detailed attack planning and when the campaign rally was announced, “he became hyper-focused on that specific event and looked at it as a target of opportunity.”
The FBI found that Crooks fired eight shots and was killed about six minutes after he climbed onto a rooftop.
The agent said they have seen “no definitive ideology,” either left or right-leaning, associated with the suspect.
The FBI will continue working to determine his motive.