After the attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life at a rally in Butler, Pa., on Saturday, July 13, multiple people shared a post online claiming to be from a sniper working at the rally.
The viral post, which originally appeared on the online message board 4chan but spread to other social media platforms, says, “My name is Jonathan Willis, I’m the officer in the famous photo of the two snipers on the roof at Trump’s rally. I came here to inform the public that I had the assassin in my sights for at least 3 minutes, but the head of the secret service refused to give the order to take out the perp. 100% the top brass prevented me from killing the assassin before he took the shots at president Trump.”
Several VERIFY readers, including Alicia and Rob, asked us to look into the post’s legitimacy.
THE QUESTION
Is a viral post claiming to be from a sniper at Trump’s rally legitimate?
THE SOURCES
- Secret Service spokesperson
- Pennsylvania State Police spokesperson
- Butler Police Department
- RevEye, a reverse image search tool
- Original photo taken by the Associated Press
THE ANSWER
The viral post falsely claims to be from a sniper at Trump’s rally. The Secret Service and Pennsylvania authorities confirmed they do not have any employees, officers or troopers by the name of Jonathan Willis.
WHAT WE FOUND
A sniper named Jonathan Willis was not assigned to the rally where 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks is believed to have tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump.
The Secret Service and Pennsylvania State Police confirmed to VERIFY they do not have any employees or troopers with that name. The Butler Police Department did not respond to our request for comment, but told the Associated Press it does not have any officers by the name of Jonathan Willis.
VERIFY used RevEye, a reverse image search tool, to find that the photo shared in the 4chan post was taken by an Associated Press photographer. That photo clearly shows the words “Secret Service” underneath “Police” on one of the snipers’ vests.
But “there is no U.S. Secret Service employee” with the name Jonathan Willis, the agency’s spokesperson told VERIFY. They added that the claim circulating online is “categorically false.”
A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania State Police also told VERIFY it doesn’t have a trooper by that name and the uniform shown in the photo is not one that a member of the agency would wear.
A spokesman for the Secret Service also addressed the claims about a sniper being told not to fire on the suspect in the Trump shooting. He told the Associated Press that snipers are trained and instructed to act whenever they see a threat, and do not await instructions before taking a shot to neutralize the suspect.
Witnesses at the rally alerted law enforcement to the suspect after they saw him perched atop a nearby roof. A local law enforcement officer climbed to the roof and found Crooks, who pointed the rifle at the officer. The officer retreated down the ladder, and the gunman quickly fired toward Trump, the officials said. That’s when U.S. Secret Service gunmen shot him, officials have said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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