Former President Donald Trump was shot in the ear during a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, but he declared he was ‘fine’. Law enforcement is now initiating an investigation with a scale unprecedented in the United States in more than 40 years.
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During the incident, one person in the crowd died and two others were injured. The unidentified gunman, who opened fire on the gathering from outside the fence, was killed by Secret Service personnel.
Around 6pm Saturday, after Trump had been on stage for about 15 minutes in Butler, Pennsylvania, seven or eight popping sounds could be heard.
The former president ducked behind a podium as his Secret Service detail surrounded him. Several agents hoisted and took him from the stage, leaving blood on his right ear and cheek.
A post on Trump’s Truth Social account states that he ‘was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear.’
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‘I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin,’ according to the post.
Law enforcement believes the gunshot was an assassination attempt. An official stated that the law enforcement agency is now ‘looking at photographs’ and ‘trying to run his (gunman’s) DNA and get biometric confirmation,’ but has not yet established his motive or identity.
In remarks from Delaware, President Joe Biden said that ‘there’s no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick.’
‘We cannot allow for this to be happening. We cannot be like this. We cannot condone this,’ he added.
The president spoke with Trump late Saturday night, according to the White House.
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Picture: Rebecca DROKE / AFP