Questions are being asked about how the gunman managed to get so close to Donald Trump at his rally despite tight security.

Thomas Matthew Crooks was able to get onto the roof of a building near the event in Pennsylvania and shoot at Trump from 130 meters (430 feet) away. The US Secret Service said they had relied on local police to cover that building.

One person in the crowd was killed, two were critically injured, and Trump was hit in the ear.

Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi explained that while his agents secured the inside of the fairgrounds, local police were supposed to secure the area outside, including the building used by the gunman.

However, the local sheriff’s department said the state police were responsible, and the state police claimed it wasn’t their responsibility.

Observers are wondering how the security plans failed so badly. Some people in the crowd saw the suspect on the roof just before the shooting, and a local security officer saw him but couldn’t stop him.

Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe admitted there was a failure in securing the area but said no single party was to blame.

Former Secret Service agent Jason Russell told the BBC that the Secret Service often relies on local police due to limited resources and that they usually plan security with local agencies in advance.

He suggested that the building the gunman used was identified as a threat but local authorities didn’t prevent access.

Witness Thomas Gleason, a former Army paratrooper and ranger, said better security was needed for potential long-range threats. The FBI is now leading the investigation, and both the House and Senate are looking into the shooting.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas called it a security failure, and the director of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, said her agency is working with others to understand and prevent such incidents.

Cheatle will face the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on July 22.

Credit: BBC.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd167v5lpq2o

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