The mystery surrounding Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, the slain gunman who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump on Saturday, continues to deepen as law enforcement investigators are no closer to finding a motive behind the shooting.
The FBI has analyzed Crooks' cell phone and talked to Crooks' parents, Matthew and Mary Crooks, but have found little insight, other than Crooks' parents describing him as someone who didn't appear to have any strong political leanings and had few, if any, friends, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
Crooks shot at least six rounds from the rooftop of the American Glass Research International Inc. factory building in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, about 130 yards away from where Trump was speaking. A bullet grazed Trump's right ear, one crowd member was killed, and two others wounded. A Secret Service sniper then shot Crooks.
Investigators said Crooks appeared to have acted alone, and they were turning to his computer and other devices in hopes of finding any clues about his ideology.
The FBI also talked to a former employer of Crooks, former classmates, neighbors to the Crooks family and an employee at a shooting range where Crooks had been a member, but gathered little to point to Crooks' motive, the Journal reported.
Crooks' father told authorities he assumed his son was at the gun range Saturday but became concerned when he couldn't reach him and called police after news of the shooting. The rifle Crooks used was one of more than a dozen registered to and legally purchased by his father, with whom he often went to the shooting range, law-enforcement officials said, according to the Journal.
In Crooks' sedan parked near the rally, the Journal reported authorities found two explosives and a ballistic vest, with three 30-round magazines in it, the officials said, an indication that he might have wanted to cause more damage.
He also hid another bomb in the bedroom of his family's home. The discoveries suggest Crooks had a plan, but early indications are that he kept it to himself.
After he was killed, photos showed Crooks wearing a gray T-shirt from Demolition Ranch, a popular YouTube channel with videos about firearms, demolition, and other topics. The Journal reported it examined a shirt sold by Demolition Ranch and was able to identify the same American flag silhouette and partial logo on Crooks' clothing.
Matt Carriker, a Texas-based YouTube influencer who runs Demolition Ranch, said in a video that he was "shocked and confused" to find out Crooks was wearing a Demolition Ranch shirt. Carriker said he doesn't vet people who buy their shirts and never had contact with Crooks. "He bought a shirt online and unfortunately wore it that day," Carriker said.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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