A Department of Homeland Security Inspector General report reveals Secret Service personnel searched the internet for the shooter’s rooftop location while Thomas Crooks prepared to fire at President Trump during the July 13, 2024, Butler, Pennsylvania rally.
Counter-Drone System Failed During Critical Hours
The Secret Service completely missed Crooks’ nine-minute drone surveillance flight over the rally grounds between 3:51 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. because their only counter-drone system was offline. The operator, who received just 20 minutes of informal training and never shadowed an experienced operator, failed to test the equipment the day before despite agency policy requiring it. He discovered the malfunction only on the morning of the rally.
𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐘: 🇺🇸 DHS report says a Secret Service member Googled the rooftop location where Trump's supposed assassin was stationed, before the shots were taken. pic.twitter.com/TgiXdAJHy0
— Coinvo (@Coinvo) July 3, 2026
The inexperienced operator spent hours attempting repairs. He called the equipment vendor shortly after noon but reached technical support only at 1:11 p.m. By 3:04 p.m., the vendor said the issue required escalation due to limited weekend staffing. The system remained down while Crooks completed his aerial reconnaissance. The operator finally restored functionality at 4:29 p.m., nearly 30 minutes after Crooks finished his surveillance, by replacing a broken Ethernet cable with one borrowed from Trump’s audiovisual crew.
Communications Breakdown Left Agents Unaware
The Secret Service established a separate communications room with Pennsylvania State Police while local law enforcement operated from a mobile command center 257 yards away. Local agencies transmitted 102 radio messages about the increasingly urgent search for a suspicious person. The Secret Service room received only five phone calls and three text messages. They never heard the critical transmission identifying a suspect on the roof with a long gun.
At 6:09 p.m., when local law enforcement called warning about a suspicious person on the AGR roof, the communications room supervisor and counter-drone operator failed to request the building’s location. Instead, the operator began searching online for the address rather than treating the call as an immediate threat requiring protective action.
What This Means
The Inspector General concluded that experienced Technical Security Division personnel, as originally requested, would likely have resolved the equipment malfunction before Crooks launched his drone. The report used a 3D model to confirm the drone’s flight path and what Crooks observed during his reconnaissance. The findings represent another devastating assessment of Secret Service failures that nearly resulted in a presidential assassination.