Who was Corey Comperatore? Firefighter killed during Trump assassination attempt
The firefighter, Corey Comperatore, “died a hero” while shielding his daughters from the bullet at the Trump's Pennsylvania rally.
The victim of the shooting at a campaign rally held for former US President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania on Saturday was a 50-year-old ex-chief of the firefighters named Corey Comperatore, said Josh Shapiro, the Governor of Pennsylvania, on Sunday. He “died a hero”.
Comperatore, a Trump supporter, attended the rally in Butler with his wife and two daughters. When gunshots erupted, he heroically shielded his family, diving over them to protect them from the bullets. Governor Shapiro commended Comperatore's bravery: “Corey died a hero.”
“Corey was a girl dad. Corey was a firefighter. Corey went to church every Sunday. Corey loved his community. Most especially, Corey loved his family.”
ALSO READ| ‘He was just very mad’: Meet NYT's Doug Mills, who photographed bullet whizzing past Donald Trump
Remembering the fallen firefighter, Corey Comperatore, who ‘died a hero’
Comperatore's sister wrote on Facebook her brother“ was a hero that shielded his daughters.”
“Corey was the very best of us, may his memory be a blessing,” Shapiro added.
POTUS Joe Biden also extended his condolences to Comperatore’s family during a speech on Saturday afternoon. He recognized Comperatore's sacrifice, saying, “He was a father. He was protecting his family from the bullets that were being fired. He lost his life. God loved him.”
Biden addressed the nation, condemning the violence saying, “There is no place in America for this kind of violence, or any violence. An assassination attempt is contrary to everything we stand for as a nation, everything. It’s not who we are as a nation. It’s not America, and we cannot allow this to happen.”
Paul Hayden, a neighbor of Comperatore for about 20 years, spoke fondly of him despite their political differences. “He knew I was a Biden fan, I knew he’s a Trump fan,” Hayden told NBC News.
“But we never let that come in between us. We still said ‘hi’ to each other, we still talked to each other. Some people take it to the extreme.”
Governor Shapiro said, “Political disagreements can never, ever be addressed through violence.”
“Disagreements are OK, but we need to use a peaceful political process to settle those differences.”
Who were the other two victims at the Trump rally?
Two other persons from Pennsylvania were also shot at the rally, per Gov. Shapiro. According to Pennsylvania State Police, the injured were identified as David Dutch, aged 57 years, and James Copenhaver, aged 74 years. Both of them are recovering well and are in a stable condition.
US Representative Ronny Jackson said his nephew was “injured” but “thankfully his injury was not serious.”
“They heard shots ringing out — my nephew then realized he had blood on his neck and something had grazed and cut his neck. He was treated by the providers in the medical tent.”
The shooting occurred approximately six minutes into Trump’s speech. Trump was seen clutching his ear after the gunshots and quickly ducked as Secret Service agents surrounded him. The former president later revealed that he was grazed by a bullet that pierced the upper part of his right ear.
The FBI identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. Crooks was immediately neutralized by the Secret Service. FBI said they “currently have an no identified motive” and “at present, we have not identified an ideology associated with the subject.”