The FBI said on Sunday that it has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks as the individual involved in the shooting of former U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday evening in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.
In a statement released this morning, the FBI stated, “The FBI has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20 years old, from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the individual involved in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.” The statement added that the investigation is ongoing to gather more information.
Bethel Park is a relatively affluent and predominantly white city located in the southern suburbs of Greater Pittsburgh.
American reports indicated that Thomas Matthew Crooks was affiliated with the Republican Party and graduated in 2022 from Bethel Park High School.
The upcoming primary elections scheduled for November 5 were to be the first in which Crooks would vote, as he had reached the legal voting age.
Kevin Rojek, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Pittsburgh Field Office, said that Crooks had no identification on him when he was killed at the scene, so the FBI conducted a “DNA test” before revealing the shooter’s name.
According to the Associated Press, one attendee was killed and two others were critically injured. Reports indicated that Crooks was armed with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, while the motives for the shooting remain unknown at this time.
Trump stated on social media that a bullet grazed the top of his right ear before Secret Service agents removed him from the stage.
The Secret Service said it killed Thomas Matthew Crooks “the suspected shooter” who attacked the gathering from an elevated position.
The shooting incident occurred a day before the start of the 2024 Republican National Convention, which will take place from July 15 to 18 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The convention will see the party officially nominate Donald Trump for the presidential race expected in November this year.
source: lualuatv
