Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe testified Tuesday to the Senate Homeland Security Committee the Secret Service did not know there was a man on the roof of a building with a firearm until he fired.
“Based on what I know right now, neither the secret service counter sniper teams nor members of the former president’s security detail had any knowledge that there was a man on the roof of the AGR building with a firearm. It is my understanding those personnel were not aware the assailant had a firearm until they heard gunshots,” he said.
He said prior to the man — Thomas Matthew Crooks — fired, Secret Service was operating with the knowledge that “local law enforcement was working an issue of a suspicious individual.”
U.S. Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe, Jr., prepares to testify during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Senate Judiciary joint committee-hearing on the security failures leading to the assassination attempt on former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Washington, DC, on July 30, 2024. (ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
Rowe’s claim comes after speculation over whether Secret Service snipers had seen Crooks on the rooftop with a rifle, but did not shoot due to rules of engagement.
Rowe said, “I regret that information was not passed to Congress and the public sooner [and] I fear this lack of information has given rise to multiple false and dangerous conspiracy theories about what took place that day. And I want to debunk these theories.”
Rowe addressed speculation over the Secret Service sniper not firing sooner, saying, “The secret service counter sniper neutralized the assailant within seconds after the assailant fired his weapon, that counter sniper had full discretion to use deadly force to stop an attacker, and did not need to seek authorization to fire.”
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He added, “I am immensely proud of the selfless dedication of our employees to the mission every day across the globe, the men and women answer the call to protect our nation’s leaders, and the standard is no fail for a reason during our current high operational tempo, I want, and I need to ensure that the Secret Service workforce are uplifted so they can focus on carrying out the mission.
“They have my full support, and I’m confident in their abilities to ensure the safety and security of the people we protect. They are worthy of trust and confidence, and they deserve your support, as well as the support of the American people.”
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