The FBI says the shooting committed by the 20-year-old shooter was an assassination attempt against the former president and Republican candidate.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks as the suspect in the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
The suspect, a resident of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, was shot and killed by the Secret Service seconds after he allegedly fired at a stage where Trump was speaking at Saturday’s rally, days before the Republican convention.
Trump said on social media that a bullet “pierced the top” of his right ear before agents took him off stage. He also offered his condolences to the family of the rally attendee who was killed by the suspect.
Who are the bad guys?
Crooks lived about an hour from where the Butler shooting occurred. He is a 2022 graduate of Bethel Park High School, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He received a $500 “star award” from the National Mathematics and Science Initiative, according to the newspaper.
A video from the 2022 graduation ceremony cited by The New York Times shows Crooks receiving his high school diploma to some applause. Video of that ceremony posted online shows Crooks wearing glasses and a black graduation gown and posing with a school official.
Political leanings
State voter records show Crooks was a registered Republican and the upcoming November 5 election would have been the first time Crooks would have been old enough to vote in a presidential race.
However, when he was 17, he made a $15 donation to ActBlue, a political action committee that raises money for left-wing politicians and Democrats, according to a 2021 Federal Election Commission document. intended for the Progressive Turnout Project, a national group that encourages Democrats to vote.
The FBI officially identifies the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
Voter records show Crooks was a registered Republican who made a single $15 donation to a liberal PAC on Jan. 20, 2021 — the day of Biden’s inauguration. pic.twitter.com/orEO4hq1PS-Prem Thakker (@prem_thakker) July 14, 2024
How did he shoot?
On Saturday, according to a video from California-based entertainment news website TMZ, Crooks is seen lying face down on a roof with a rifle in his hand.
“The guy has longer brown hair and appears to be wearing a gray shirt/khaki pants – and as you can see, he’s trying carefully [to] spot a target from afar before pulling the trigger,” TMZ reported.
Trump, 78, had just begun his speech when shots rang out. He grabbed his right ear with his right hand, then lowered his hand to look at it before falling to his knees behind the podium before Secret Service agents covered him.
He appeared about a minute later, his red “Make America Great Again” hat fallen. He could be heard saying “wait, wait,” before raising his fist in the air. Officers then rushed him to a black SUV.
A second video published by TMZ shows shaky images of the same roof and a blurred body.
“You can see the guy over there,” says one person off camera. “I think they beat him because the guy looks dead.”
What’s next?
The FBI said investigations are underway to determine Crooks’ motive for the attack that occurred months before the presidential election.
“We are looking at photos now and trying to analyze his DNA and get biometric confirmation,” said Kevin Rojek, FBI special agent in charge, during a press conference.
Crooks’ father, Matthew Crooks, 53, told CNN he was also trying to find out what happened and would wait until he spoke to authorities before speaking about his son.
USA Today reported that dozens of police vehicles were parked outside a residence listed at the address on Crooks’ voter registration. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also on scene and a bomb squad is at the residence.
However, the perimeter of the suspect’s residence was guarded by yellow police caution tape and the Federal Aviation Administration also closed the airspace over Bethel Park for “special security reasons.”
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
