Thomas Matthew Crooks, the gunman who tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump during a rally in Pennsylvania, was a beleaguered loner. according to former classmates – authorities said they discovered explosive devices inside his car after the shooting.
Crooks, 20, was on the roof of a manufacturing plant more than 130 meters from Trump's rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds on Saturday when he fired at the former president, hitting Trump in the ear, killing a hero volunteer firefighter and wounding two others.
Secret Service snipers quickly responded, returning fire and taking out the 20-year-old, but not before he could squeeze off about eight rounds.
He was found with an AR-style semi-automatic assault rifle his father had purchased and was wearing a T-shirt for a popular gun YouTube channel, Demolition Ranch.
A former classmate told The Post, “He didn't seem weird or anything. I would have called him a Republican.”
The classmate added: “He was more of a loner. I probably had a group of friends, but not many friends.
Crooks, who graduated from Bethel Park High School, about 25 miles south of Trump's Butler rally in 2022, was a loner who was bullied “relentlessly.” former classmate Jason Kohler told KDKA.
While in high school, the would-be gunman had a penchant for wearing hunting gear and playing video games in class, he said.
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When he was 17, Crooks donated $15 to the liberal political action committee ActBlue on President Joe Biden's 2021 inauguration, the Intercept reported.
But when he turned 18 the following September, Crooks registered with the Republican Party, online state records showed.
It was not immediately clear Sunday why Crooks targeted the former president.
There was no known manifesto or clear motive posted online by the gunman as of Sunday, according to law enforcement sources.
The search for Crooks' devices stalled when authorities found possible explosive devices in his car and home, the sources said.
The gunman's father told CNN on Sunday that he was trying to figure out “what the hell is going on” after his son began to be identified as the suspected killer, adding that he would “wait until I talk to law enforcement.” to talk about the shooting.
The gun Crooks allegedly used was reportedly purchased by his father.
Creepy images shared online of the aftermath of the shooting showed a Secret Service sniper standing over the body of Crooks, who was limp on the ground in an all-gray suit with streaks of blood running down his face and through his long brown hair.
Streets around Crooks' home were blocked off by police Sunday, but a neighbor told The Post he saw an Allegheny County car bomb preparing to enter the home shortly after 1 a.m. .
“I saw a post with his name and he lived in Bethel Park, so I looked him up and he lives 0.3 miles away,” Dan Maloney, 30, said of the shooter.
“I went down there and talked to the county bomb squad at 1:06. He said he was about to go into the house,” Maloney added. “I didn't know the guy. No one in this neighborhood really talks to each other.”
“It is a tragedy. One person died, another is in hospital. He went after a former president and probably the next one.”
Crooks' chaotic attack on Trump was captured on horrifying video, which showed the former president being tackled to the ground by Secret Service agents.
Seconds later, Trump stood up and told his security detail to “wait” before raising his fist and yelling “fight” to the very shaken crowd.
Trump had been treated at a hospital in Pennsylvania for ear injuries before that seen leaving his private jetTrump Force One, at Newark Liberty International Airport shortly after midnight.
The former president was flanked by the Secret Service as he made his way down to the tarmac, and appeared to still be wearing the same navy suit he was wearing when he was shot.
One rally attendee was killed while two bystanders were seriously injured in the attack, authorities said.
Saturday's attack marked the first serious assassination attempt on a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.
It came just days before Trump was officially named the Republican nominee at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
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