The FBI on Wednesday provided additional details about would-be Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks’ activity before and during the July 13 campaign rally that left one man dead.
While the FBI has not established a definitive motive for the shooter or any co-conspirators with advanced knowledge of the attack, Kevin Rojek, special agent in charge of the FBI Pittsburgh Field Office, told reporters during a press call that Crooks had “a sustained detailed effort to plan an attack on some event, meaning he looked at any number of events or targets.”
The 20-year-old gunman “became hyper-focused” on Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when it was announced in early July. He had no identifiable political ideology, Rojek added.
Over the month leading up to the attack, Crooks made more than 60 searches related to both President Biden and former President Trump. In late September 2023, an account associated with Crooks “searched the former president’s campaign schedule and upcoming appearances in Pennsylvania,” Rojek said.
“Next, from April of 2024 through July 12, the subject searched campaign events for both former President Trump and President Biden, including events scheduled to take place in western Pennsylvania specifically on July 4, 2024.
On July 9, he searched ‘ballistic calculator,’” Rojek said. On July 6, Crooks searched for specific details about Trump’s event in Butler.
“Next, from April of 2024 through July 12, the subject searched campaign events for both former President Trump and President Biden, including events scheduled to take place in western Pennsylvania specifically on July 4, 2024.
On July 9, he searched ‘ballistic calculator,’” Rojek said. On July 6, Crooks searched for specific details about Trump’s event in Butler.
