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By Ezekiel David
Thomas Crooks, who attempted to kill former President Donald Trump in July, acted alone, and there was no proof of foreign participation, the FBI said in a news briefing on Wednesday. They describe Crooks’s internet activity as exhibiting a “mixture of views,” but they have not been able to pinpoint a motivation.
According to Kevin Rojek, head of the FBI’s Pittsburgh office, Crooks’s online searches revealed an interest in both Trump and then-candidate Joe Biden’s campaign events starting in September 2023. “When… the Trump rally was announced early in July, he became hyper-focused on that specific event and looked at it as a target of opportunity,” Mr. Rojek said.
On July 13, the 20-year-old Crooks attempted to assassinate Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Crooks fired eight shots from a nearby rooftop, grazing Trump’s ear, killing one man, and seriously injuring two others before being killed by a Secret Service sniper.
A week before the event, Crooks registered and studied the location of Trump’s speaking platform at the rally and the distance between Lee Harvey Oswald and John F. Kennedy at the time of the latter’s murder. He also looked for recipes and supplies for building bombs. Mr. Rojek said, “We believe the subject engaged in detailed attack planning.”
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Despite Crooks’s registered Republican affiliation and a 2021 donation to the liberal group ActBlue, the FBI found no clear evidence of a specific political leaning. They are investigating anti-Semitic comments linked to accounts associated with Crooks to determine authorship.
The FBI addressed criticism regarding the crime scene cleanup and the return of Crooks’s body to his family. Mr. Rojek explained that standard procedures were followed, including an autopsy, and that it is not standard practice to retain remains indefinitely. The autopsy revealed no traces of drugs or alcohol in Crooks’s system.
A bipartisan Congressional task force is investigating the security failures that led to the incident. The Secret Service Director at the time, Kimberly Cheatle, resigned last month following pressure from lawmakers and has been replaced by Acting Director Ronald Rowe. At least five Secret Service agents have been placed on administrative leave.
(Source: BBC)
