UPDATE: Bomb-making materials found at shooter’s home, officials say

The FBI named Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the suspected shooter behind the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday.

One attendee was killed and two were critically injured. Trump said on social media that a bullet “pierced the upper part” of his right ear before agents whisked him off stage.

Law enforcement officials tell The Associated Press bomb-making materials were found inside the vehicle of the man suspected in the Trump rally shooting. There were also bomb-making materials found at his home.

The two officials were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The range from which 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired and his clothing led to early speculation that the shooter had military experience. However, all the branches of the military searched their records Sunday and said in response to a query by The Associated Press that they had no records of him serving.

“We’ve confirmed with each of the military service branches that there is no military service affiliation for the suspect with that name or date of birth in any branch, active or reserve component in their respective databases,” Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said.

The Secret Service said it killed the suspected shooter, who attacked from an elevated position outside the rally venue.

In the memo obtained by The Associated Press, Trump’s senior campaign advisers thanked the Secret Service and all first responders for their efforts.

The memo also said staff in Washington and West Palm Beach, Florida, should stay away from the office as they assess those locations. The memo also says they’re enhancing the armed security presence on-site.

“Our highest priority is to keep all of you on this staff safe,” the memo says.

The memo also tells staff not to comment publicly on the apparent assassination attempt against Trump and that dangerous rhetoric on social media won’t be tolerated.

Records show 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks was registered as a Republican voter in Pennsylvania, but federal campaign finance reports also show he gave $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day President Joe Biden was sworn in to office.

Authorities told reporters Crooks wasn’t carrying identification so they were using DNA and other methods to confirm his identity.