How the assassination attempt on Donald Trump unfolded

Former president Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at his campaign rally on Saturday night, just days before he is set to be officially crowned the Republican party’s presidential candidate at the RNC.

Trump was struck in the ear by the bullet before he ducked down behind the stage podium and was protected by Secret Service agents.

One rally attendee was killed and two others seriously injured, before the gunman, a registered Republican voter, was shot dead by authorities.

Here’s how the attack played out:

Throuhgout Saturday, Trump attendees flocked to the outskirts of the 13,000-strong Pennsylvania city of Butler, 35 miles from Pittsburgh, for a rally that night.

The event was pitted as Trump’s final campaign event ahead of the Republican National Convention.

Follow our live blog for updates on the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump

Located at Butler Farm Show Grounds, a popular fairground located several miles outside of downtown Butler, the rally had been due to take place at 5pm on Saturday.

But, Trump didn’t take the stage until 6.03pm, emerging to the familiar sound of country singer Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA”.

The gunman, later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, had positioned himself on the roof of a nearby office building belonging to a glass research firm, Butler County’s district attorney told The Washington Post.

He was fewer than 140 metres away from both Trump and from Security Service snipers stationed on the roof of another building behind the former president.

One Trump supporter who had been listening to the speech from just outside the rally grounds told the BBC that he had tried to alert Secret Service agents to a rifle-wielding man he spotted “bear