Donald Trump sniper shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was loner who was bullied everyday, loved video games & hunting according to former classmate, while another classmate said the would be assassin never talked about politics or having malice towards former President.
The 20-year-old sniper gunman who sought to assassinate Donald Trump during a Saturday rally was described by former classmates as a bullied loner who had a fascination for hunting outfits and video games.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, was killed by the Secret Service on Saturday evening after he opened fire at the Butler Farm Show grounds, grazing Trump after a bullet went through his ear along with killing another attendee and critically injuring another two.
The shooting took place as Trump addressed supporters as the gunman took aim from the rooftop of a manufacturing building some 130 yards away, firing off 8 shots, before being ‘neutralized’ by secret service snipers almost just as immediately after taking aim and firing towards Trump.
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Used dad’s gun which had been legally purchased
About 45 seconds after the former president was shot, agents were heard on the rally microphone saying, ‘Shooter’s down.’
The AR-15-type semi-automatic style rifle Crooks used in the attempted assassination was on Sunday revealed to have been legally purchased by his father, according to the DailyMail.
Crooks worked at a nearby nursing home. An administrator there told USA TODAY that the company was shocked to learn of the shooting and that Crooks had passed a background check for his job.
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Loner who was relentlessly bullied who loved guns
Of note, the sniper gunman had no prior criminal history in Pennsylvania, nor of having been sued there, according to state court records. No record of him in federal court databases existed either. Also worth mentioning, Crooks appeared to have almost zero social media accounts. It remained unclear if Meta and X (formerly known as Twitter) had removed the would be assassin suspect’s accounts, had they existed.
Crooks – who graduated from Bethel Park High School in 2022 – was a loner who was ‘relentlessly’ bullied, former classmate Jason Kohler told KDKA.
He was known for wearing ‘hunting’ outfits to class, Kohler added.
Of intrigue, the gun lover at the time of his shooting death was wearing a gray T-shirt with an American flag on the sleeve with block lettering resembling the one for Demolition Ranch, a gun website that celebrated gun culture. The would be assassin was also seen wearing other gun advocate T-shirts by the maker in other images.
Dispelling claims that Crooks was a left wing agitator, Crooks made a $15 donation to the liberal ActBlue political action committee on President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day in 2021, the Intercept reported.
Volatile relationship with Democrat registered parents
When he turned 18 the following September, however, he registered with the Republican Party, online state records showed.
Of note, the sniper gunman, whose parents were both registered Democrats had a volatile relationship with their son, leading to him moving out from the family home at age 18, before also being leaving his grandparents home after being reprimanded for taking drugs.
‘He didn’t seem like really weird or anything. I would have pegged him as a Republican,’ one former classmate told the nypost in the aftermath of Saturday’s shooting.
‘He never outwardly spoke about his political views or how much he hated Trump or anything,‘ another Bethel Park High graduate, Sarah D’Angelo, told The Wall Street Journal.
Crooks had ‘a few friends’ but ‘didn’t have a full friend group,’ D’Angelo remembered, adding that she remembered him playing video games on his laptop during homeroom period at school.
Crooks did not appear in the 2022 Bethel Park High School yearbook, but video showed him walking across the stage to accept his diploma that spring.
No known motive
He also received a $500 National Math and Science Initiative Star Award during his graduating year, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.
Investigators later found explosive devices in Crooks’ car, which was parked not far from the grounds where the rally took place.
Crooks’ father, Matthew Crooks, 53, declined to speak to CNN on Saturday night and said he needed to figure out ‘what the hell is going on.’
As of Sunday afternoon, the authorities had not shared a possible motive for the attack, stating that there were no obvious clues as they continued to investigate.
