Rep. Mike Kelly recounts diving to cover Marc Fogel's mother at Trump rally

When U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly heard the gunshots Saturday at the Butler Farm Show complex, he knew he had to protect 95-year-old Malphine Fogel, who was sitting next to him.

Not 30 minutes earlier, Fogel had enjoyed a brief audience with former President Donald Trump to discuss the plight of her son, Marc Fogel, a teacher imprisoned in Russia for carrying a small amount of medical marijuana.

Now, a gunman was opening fire as Trump spoke. Trump was struck in the ear, one spectator was killed and two others were seriously wounded.

Like others, Kelly, a Republican from Butler, said that during the first burst of gunfire, he was unsure what was making the noise. But when it became apparent during the second volley that they were shots, he took action.

Kelly dove to cover Fogel and Christina Toretti, a Trump supporter from Indiana, Pa.

Both were sitting next to the congressman, about 50 feet to the right of where Trump was speaking at the podium, said Kelly.

Kelly told TribLive Monday that he was motivated to keep Fogel safe because of her dogged efforts to bring her ailing son home.

“We just didn’t want anything to happen to her,” Kelly said. “We have been working with her for quite a while, trying to get Marc out of Russia.”

Marc Fogel, a Butler County native, was arrested in August 2021 in Moscow for carrying just under a half-ounce of medical marijuana. He was sentenced the following June to 14 years in prison.

Frustrated by inaction and a lack of responsiveness from the Biden administration, Malphine Fogel released a video last week asking for Trump to meet her while he was in town as she pressed her efforts to free her son.

Trump obliged. Fogel spoke briefly with the former president and current Republican presidential nominee in the VIP area at the rally before he took the stage on Saturday. She told TribLive that he vowed to bring Fogel home if elected.

The Fogel family has been upping its advocacy to pressure the federal officials to designate Marc Fogel as “wrongfully detained” in hopes that would help with his release.

Before the shooting, both Kelly and former congressional candidate Sean Parnell mentioned Marc Fogel in their speeches, informing the thousands in the crowd of his plight and advocating for his release.

After the shooting, Kelly said he was surprised by Malphine Fogel’s resilience. He said he was walking her out as police were telling everyone to clear the field after the Secret Service killed the would-be assassin and declared the threat over, and she didn’t need any assistance.

“A lady who’s 95 and walking with a cane and she’s telling me, ‘Don’t worry about me.’ That’s just so indicative of that group. They are the greatest generation,” Kelly, 76, said.