Donald Trump Attack: Shooter Thomas Crooks' Father Speaks Up and Asks for Some 'Space'
Former president Donald Trump survived a failed assassination attempt on July 13th while addressing a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The lone gunman 20-year-old Thomas Crooks was immediately taken down by the Secret Service before he could cause further harm. The authorities are still attempting to piece together the young man's motive behind the assassination and make sense of the unexpected occurrence. Meanwhile, Fox News Digital caught up with Matthew Crooks, the father of the deceased gunman in public for the first time, however, the elderly man refused to give any byte about his son. "We're going to release a statement when our legal counsel advises us to do so – until then, we have no comment," he said. "We just want to try to take care of ourselves right now. Please, just give us our space."
Matthew was spotted in the parking lot of a grocery center with a masked woman, the duo loaded their things into a car and ignored the media attention. The FBI has been working with Crooks' family members to determine why Thomas took the extreme step. Matthew and Mary are professional counselors and they have been cooperative with the investigation so far. According to Fox News Digital, they had been in touch with the police hours before their son committed the assassination bid, an insider revealed.
I have been wondering why they have been so silent. You would think their legal counsel would have released a statement by now.
— Mrs Denosko🇺🇸 🌝 (@Denosko1) July 24, 2024
The source claimed that Crooks' parents informed local authorities about their son's sudden disappearance however, it was unclear whether they were aware that he was carrying his father's AR-15 gun. Authorities have found that the Crooks shared varied political beliefs, although the lone gunman was registered as a Republican, in 2021 he donated to a Democratic campaign. In addition, his father is a registered Libertarian and a member of a local firearms club. Meanwhile, his mother is a registered Democrat.
Will be interesting to see where this all goes. Seems like the whole family is all over the place with their political beliefs so who knows really.
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) July 24, 2024
What role did the father have in what Crooks did on J13?
In 2020, Thomas received his diploma from Bethel Park High School. He graduated in May with an associate's degree in engineering from Allegheny County Community College. Following his acceptance at the University of Pittsburgh and Robert Morris University, he intended to enroll there.
Before the incident, Thomas was observed using a rangefinder, and detectives are investigating how he managed to elude the authorities and scale the roof with his father's weapon. A former classmate revealed that Thomas had challenged him years prior on his endorsement of Trump and conveyed distaste for politicians. As per Reuters, the FBI stated that they haven't found any history of mental health issues nor found any threatening source on his social media. They believe he acted alone, on the 13th, Thomas aimed from a rooftop position 150 yards (140 meters) away from the Butler, Pennsylvania, platform where Trump was giving a speech.
Later, according to investigators, he started shooting with a semiautomatic rifle in the form of an AR-15 that his father had bought. In addition to badly wounding two bystanders, the gunfire also struck Trump's ear and killed a fifty-year-old man. The FBI is investigating the incident as, "an assassination attempt and potential domestic terrorism."
