A coherent picture of the moments before the shooting is emerging, but the shooter’s ideology and reasons for pulling the trigger remained a mystery.
Thomas Crooks was pacing next to a warehouse building outside the Butler Farm Show grounds as a crowd gathered for one of former US president Donald Trump’s signature outdoor rallies.
Crooks fired his rifle at about 6.10pm, according to a Reuters photographer at the rally. Trump winced and grabbed his right ear. Secret Service agents tackled the former president and supporters dived for cover. A bullet hit what appeared to be the hydraulic line of a forklift that held a bank of speakers to the right side of the stage. Fluid spewed across the crowd and the lift’s arm collapsed. To the left, screams erupted where a spectator had been fatally shot.
One college instructor told Reuters that she had gone back through his assignments this week, bewildered that the conscientious student who distinguished himself by going “above and beyond” could have turned murderous. The college closed its engineering program on June 30. Crooks was planning to continue his engineering education at nearby Robert Morris University, that school confirmed.
The political split showed up in the Crooks household. Thomas was a registered Republican. His father is a Libertarian and his mother is a Democrat, voter registration records show. Both are social workers. When Crooks was 17, he made a $US15 donation to a political action committee earmarked for a Democratic turnout group, according to federal election data.Credit:His school counsellor Jim Knapp, who retired in 2022, said Crooks rarely came across his radar because he wasn’t a “needy type kid”.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Trump rally shooting: FBI names Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, as ‘subject involved’Suspect was shot dead after assassination attempt on the former president at a campaign rally
Read more »
New details emerge about Trump shooter Thomas Matthew CrooksA haunting photo has surfaced of gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks lying dead after authorities opened fire following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
Read more »
Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks: What we know so farThe FBI identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Pennsylvania as the suspect in the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump. Here is what we know so far about Crooks.
Read more »
Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks: What we know so farThe FBI identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Pennsylvania as the suspect in the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump. Here is what we know so far about Crooks.
Read more »
Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks: What we know so farThe FBI identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Pennsylvania as the suspect in the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump. Here is what we know so far about Crooks.
Read more »
Chilling find in Donald Trump shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks’ car as father breaks silence7NEWS brings you the latest local news from Australia and around the world. Stay up to date with all of the breaking sport, politics, entertainment, finance, weather and business headlines. Today's news, live updates & all the latest breaking stories from 7NEWS.
Read more »