The portrait so far obtained of the 20-year-old nursing home assistant who allegedly tried to assassinate Donald Trump at a campaign rally offers frustratingly little insight into why he made the attempt — or how he came so close to killing the former president.
The initial details that have emerged about Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was shot by law enforcement, show a young man who was working an entry-level job near his hometown in Pennsylvania, where he graduated from high school in 2022 and had a reputation as a promising but quiet classmate. His high school counselor described him as “respectful” and said she never noticed that Crooks was political.
The FBI said Sunday that Crooks’ social media profiles did not contain threatening language, nor did they find a history of mental health issues. They said he acted alone and they have not offered a motive.
What is unique about Crooks compared to other recent shooters who have opened fire at schools, churches, malls, and parades is that he came within inches of killing a presidential candidate.
On Saturday afternoon, Crooks slipped onto a roof about 140 yards from Trump’s speaking platform in Butler, Pennsylvania. He then opened fire with an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle his father had purchased, authorities said.
The shooting left a 50-year-old man dead, two other bystanders seriously injured, and Trump shot in the ear — an assassination attempt that has further inflamed already bitter American political divisions.
Crooks, a resident of Bethel Park, about an hour from the shooting scene, was a registered Republican who would have been eligible to cast his first presidential vote in the Nov. 5 election, in which Trump is challenging President Joe Biden. Public records show his father is a registered Republican and his mother a registered Democrat, and that Crooks, 17, had donated $15 to a Democratic Party cause.
The nursing home administrator said in a statement that Crooks was working as a dietary aide at the nursing home at the time of the shooting.
Marcy Grimm, administrator of the Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, said, “We were shocked and saddened to learn of his involvement, as Thomas Matthew Crooks performed his job without concern and no flaws were found in his background check.”
Never considered political
Two years ago, Crooks graduated from a local high school, where he showed no particular interest in politics, according to a classmate who asked not to be identified. Crooks’ interests were focused on building computers and playing games, the classmate said in an interview.
“He was very smart. That’s what surprised me, he was a really smart kid, he studied really well,” the classmate said. “Nothing crazy ever came up in any of the conversations.”
Jim Knapp, who retired from his job as a school counselor at Bethel Park High School in 2022, said Crooks was always “quiet as a churchmouse”, “respectful” and kept to himself, though he had few friends.
Knapp said he rarely encountered Crooks because “he wasn’t a needy kind of kid.” Crooks was content to occasionally eat lunch alone in the school cafeteria, Knapp said, and would talk to students who needed companionship.
“The kids weren’t abusing him, the kids weren’t bothering him,” Knapp said.
Knapp said she never knew Crooks was political in any way, even though other kids sometimes dressed up as Trump or Biden. She said she doesn’t recall Crooks ever being disciplined at school.
“Anybody can get upset, anybody can have a problem,” he said. “Something triggered this young man and caused him to go to Butler yesterday and do what he did.”
Residents who live near Crooks’ home said they felt shocked and unsettled that an attempted murder was linked to a man from the quiet town of 33,000.
“Bethel Park is a pretty blue-collar type of area, and to think that one was that close is a little crazy,” said Wes Morgan, 42, who works at an investment management company and bikes with his children on the same road where Crooks lives.
A couple stood on the porch of their adjacent brick farmhouse, contemplating the events and activities in their neighborhood that caught the attention of people.
“There was never a gun issue. The police were never called,” said Mary Priselac, 67, who lives with her husband. “You have to wonder, what did he not get in life? What made him do this?”
FBI officials said Crooks’ gun – an AR-style 556 rifle – was purchased legally, adding that the FBI believes it was purchased by the suspect’s father. Officials said “a suspicious device” was found in the suspect’s vehicle, which was examined by bomb technicians and made safe.
Bruce Piendl, owner of Allegheny Arms & Gunworks in Bethel Park, said guns are part of the region’s culture. “You have to understand that in western Pennsylvania we have a rich tradition of hunting and fishing and outdoor activities,” he said. “Within 10 miles (16 km) of here, there are a lot of gun clubs.”
Piendl said his records showed he did not sell any firearms to the shooter, but he declined to say whether he had sold any firearms to his family.
“This is between me and God,” Piendl said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
