Trump rally shooting: what we know about the suspected gunman

 

The 20-year-old from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, was a registered Republican who donated to a progressive Super PAC. The early portrait that has emerged of the 20-year-old Pennsylvania man who authorities say tried to assassinate Donald Trump at a campaign rally in the state on Saturday before secret service agents shot him to death is a complicated and so far sparse one.

Thomas Matthew Crooks resided in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, a predominantly white, generally affluent suburb of Pittsburgh. Public records show he shared a home with parents who were licensed behavioral care counselors. Those same records contain no mention of any criminal or traffic citations or any financial problems such as foreclosures.

Actions that Crooks took late as a student at Bethel Park High School offered virtually no hint of his political leanings. He was a junior at the school, and it was the first day of Joe Biden's presidency when Crooks donated $15 to the Progressive Turnout Project, a political action committee aligned with the president's Democratic party. Public records show his father is a registered Republican and his mother a registered Democrat.

Donald Trump attempted assassination

In August 2023, Crooks registered to vote as a member of the Republican party, led by Trump since 2016. He had maintained this party affiliation when he voted in the November 2022 midterm elections, shortly after graduating from Bethel Park High School. At his high school, Crooks was among a group of students who received a $500 National Math and Science Initiative "star award".

A former classmate of Crooks stated that he had not shown particular interest in politics during high school, but they would discuss computers and games. The classmate described Crooks as "super smart" and excelled academically, saying "Nothing crazy ever came up in any conversation."

Another former schoolmate of Crooks at Bethel Park High School spoke with reporters on Sunday, recalling how Crooks "was bullied almost every day" on campus. The man said Crooks' tendency to wear "hunting" and "military" clothes, as well as eating lunch alone, led his peers to consider him a "loner" and an "outcast".

The former classmate stated, "You know how kids are these days – they're going to see someone like that and they're going to target him because they think it's funny or whatever." However, the man clarified that he was not suggesting these experiences fueled the assassination attempt but rather found the situation "honestly kind of sad."

ABC News reported that two former classmates of Crooks told the outlet that he was rejected from the school's rifle club because he was not a skilled shooter. The school officials had not immediately confirmed these recollections.

Crooks reportedly had an account on Discord, an online chat platform that began as a space for gamers but gained notoriety in part because the white supremacist who fatally shot 10 people at a grocery store in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo posted on the platform about his plans to attack the store.

Discord told the gaming news outlet Kotaku that the account that appeared to be linked to Crooks "was rarely utilized". The company's statement to Kotaku said, "We have no evidence that it was used to plan this incident or discuss his political views." Discord also strongly condemned violence of any kind, including political violence, and pledged to cooperate with law enforcement.

On Saturday, Crooks thrust himself into the center of the political world when he went about an hour north of Bethel Park and got on the roof of a bottle manufacturing plant in Butler County, Pennsylvania. Nearby, the former US president was speaking at a supporters' rally as he pursues a return to the White House in November.

Multiple people who were listening to Trump's speech outside the rally venue said they spotted Crooks as he brought an AR-style rifle to the plant rooftop and took aim in the direction of the former president. However, they claimed that officers did not immediately react to their warnings, which prompted the local district attorney, Richard Goldinger, to tell CNN that investigators needed to determine how Crooks "would've gotten to the location where he was".

Crooks ultimately managed to fire several shots toward the stage where Trump was speaking, which was less than 500ft (152.4 meters) away. One spectator was killed, and two others were critically wounded. Trump reported that a bullet "pierced the upper part" of his right ear, which was visibly bloodied – but he said he was otherwise "fine" after Secret Service agents whisked him away from the scene.

A spokesperson for the Secret Service said agents returned fire at Crooks and killed him.

ABC News reported that multiple law enforcement sources confirmed that the rifle used by the gunman on Saturday was legally purchased by the suspect's father, Matthew Crooks. This conclusion was reached after an urgent trace was conducted by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Additionally, the Associated Press revealed that bomb-making materials were found in Crooks' home and car, which was parked near the location of Saturday's Trump rally.

The Wall Street Journal mentioned that there were reports of suspicious packages near Crooks, leading to the deployment of bomb technicians.

Images shared on social media showed Crooks wearing a T-shirt with the name of a YouTube channel focused on guns and demolition.

The FBI later identified Crooks as the individual who attempted to assassinate Trump. They stated that Crooks likely acted alone and that there were no immediate public safety concerns regarding a larger conspiracy.

The FBI is still investigating the motive behind the assassination attempt and whether Crooks had any specific ideologies. Authorities mentioned that Crooks' social media did not contain any threatening language and there was no evidence of mental health issues.

Crooks' family is cooperating with the FBI's investigation, which also aims to determine how he obtained the rifle used in the shooting.

The Bethel Park skilled nursing and rehabilitation center, where Crooks worked, expressed shock and sadness upon learning about his involvement in the shooting.