As federal investigators try to piece together a motive for 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, the man identified as the would-be assassin of former President Donald Trump, they are finding more questions than answers.
FBI officials cautioned Sunday the investigation is still in the early stages but said that the information they have so far been able to uncover has failed to turn up any reason Crooks decided to take aim from a rooftop overlooking the campaign rally.
“We do have some limited insights into recent communications that he's made texts and phone call detail information that thus far has not revealed anything with regard to motive for the involvement or knowledge of anyone else in this,” FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate told reporters.
Other officials say it appears Crooks was acting alone. And they said while they have yet to crack the password and gain access to his mobile phone, his social media activity gives little indication of any ideology.
Discord, a social media platform popular with gamers, said Sunday it had discovered an account “that appears to be linked to” Crooks, and appeared to back the FBI’s conclusions.
“It was rarely utilized, has not been used in months,” a Discord spokesperson confirmed in a statement to VOA. “We have found no evidence that it was used to plan this incident, promote violence, or discuss his political views.”
In the meantime, some of those who knew Crooks have started speaking out.
Jason Kohler told reporters Sunday that he attended high school with Crooks in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, describing him as a loner and an outcast.
“He was, like a kid that was always alone. He was always bullied,” Kohler told reporters Sunday. “He was bullied so much.”
Crooks graduated from Bethel Park High School in 2022, according to a statement from the school district to a local media outlet. Local media reports show he was given a $500 award for math and science.
Kohler said he never had much interaction with Crooks, who noted would sit alone during lunch and often was targeted by other kids for the way he often wore hunting outfits or how he continued to wear a mask after COVID mask mandates ended.
“You could look at him and you would be like, 'something's a little off,’” Kohler observed.
The description is just part of the picture that is starting to emerge of Crooks, who was shot and killed by U.S. Secret Service agents after climbing to the roof of a building and firing five to six shots at Trump during a campaign rally Saturday in nearby Butler, Pennsylvania.
Law enforcement officials said Sunday they found a rudimentary bomb in Crooks’s car and home, and that the AR-style rifle he used in the shooting had been purchased by his father.
Crooks’s father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late Sunday he was trying to find out “what the hell is going on” but would “wait until I talk to law enforcement” before saying anything more.
Public records show Thomas Crooks had no prior convictions and was a registered Republican, like Trump.
And FBI officials said prior to the attempted assassination, Crooks had never been brough to the attention of law enforcement.
Officials also said they have so far not found any indications Crooks suffered from mental health issues.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon said Sunday it determined Crooks had no connection to the U.S. military.
“We've confirmed with each of the military service branches that there is no military service affiliation for the suspect with that name or date of birth in any branch, active or reserve component in their respective databases," according to a statement from the Pentagon press secretary, Major General Pat Ryder.
Some information for this article came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
