A former Pennsylvania fire chief, Corey Comperatore, was reportedly shot and killed when a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump during a rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.
“Comperatore is being remembered on social media by family members, friends and colleagues of the firefighting community. He had retired from the fire department, but remained well-known in the community,” WPXI Pittsburgh reported.
WATCH — Lindsey Graham: Trump’s Reaction After Being Shot “Will Be an Iconic Moment in American History”:
Comperatore’s sister, Dawn Comperatore Schafer, wrote in a post shared to Facebook that her brother died as he shielded his daughter as the shooter fired on Trump.
“The hatred for one man took the life of the one man we loved the most. He was a hero that shielded his daughters,” she wrote, the New York Post confirmed. “His wife and girls just lived through the unthinkable and unimaginable,” she said.
BREAKING: The Trump rally attendee who was murdered yesterday by Matthew Crooks has been identified as Corey Comperatore.
A family member has released a statement on their Facebook page about the situation.
Prayers up for Corey and his family. pic.twitter.com/WAK9p4xuUw
— Tayler Hansen (@TaylerUSA) July 14, 2024
The Post further reports:
Comperatore’s daughter, Allyson, called her father “the best dad a girl could ever ask for,” as she mourned his sudden death.
Allyson said that when the gunshots rang out, Comperatore quickly threw her and her mother to the ground to try to protect them after Trump was shot.
“He truly loved us enough to take a real bullet for us,” Allyson wrote on Facebook.
At a press conference on Sunday Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) confirmed Comperatore was indeed the victim and called him a “hero” for his brave actions.
Corey Comperatore, the man killed at Donald Trump's Pennsylvania rally, "died a hero" and dove onto his family to protect them when the shooting happened, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro says.
Comperatore, a former fire chief, was "an avid supporter of the former president, and… pic.twitter.com/OIuJtotIMN
— CBS News (@CBSNews) July 14, 2024
The alleged shooter, identified by the FBI as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, attempted to assassinate Trump by firing on the presumed Republican presidential nominee while perched on a nearby building rooftop outside of the rally. The Secret Service killed Crooks after he attempted to murder the former president, according to law enforcement.
Two additional rally attendees were critically wounded during the shooting and are receiving medical treatment at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, WPXI reported.
This story is developing.
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