Donald Trump Shooter’s Motive ‘May Stay Buried With Him Forever’: ‘This Guy was a Ghost’
Thomas Matthew Crooks has been described as ‘a ghost who kept to himself’.
Aug. 7 2024, Published 11:30 a.m. ET
Although investigators have searched for clues, they may never know what drove Thomas Matthew Crooks to attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump.
After the events that led to Crooks, 20, getting shot dead by the Secret Service at the 78-year-old ex-president's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday, July 13, RadarOnline.com can reveal that the motive behind the attempted assassination remains a mystery.
An insider said: “The guy’s a ghost who kept to himself.
The motive behind Crooks’ assassination attempt against Donald Trump remains a mystery nearly one month later.
“It's likely we’ll never know for sure what drove this young man to try to commit a historic murder.”
Crooks did not regularly post on his social media profile, but he did register himself as a Republican and donated about $15 to a liberal political action committee.
The shooting left one audience member dead and two others wounded.
Crooks attempted to assassinate Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13.
The 20-year-old was shot dead at the scene by a Secret Service sniper.
After Crooks was killed by law enforcement counter-snipers, he was found with a bullet-proof vest and remote control detonators in his pocket.
He seemed ready to cause further damage as two remote-controlled bombs were discovered in his vehicle.
The motive behind Trump's assassination attempt still remains unclear.
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Despite an unclear motive as to why Crooks armed himself with an AR-style rifle, others have theorized potential reasons behind the shooting.
Reports have suggested Trump’s would-be assassin was bullied by his former classmates at Bethel Park High.
The gunman has been depicted as an “outcast” who was picked on “relentlessly” at school.
RadarOnline.com reported the bullying theory might not be true, as a high school counselor from Pennsylvania insists there was no bullying.
Retired school counselor Jim Knapp – who worked at Bethel Park High for 30 years – did not recall Crooks getting picked on.
Knapp described his former student, who graduated in 2022, as “a quiet young man” who had a “small group of friends”.
Crooks’ attempt ‘to commit a historic murder’ may never be uncovered.
He said: “Every day, I would walk through the lunchrooms, and I would always make a point to go over to any kid sitting alone to make sure they were comfortable or to see if they wanted to interact.
“And in Thomas’ case, he would always say, ‘Hey, Mr. Knapp. I’m good, it’s good to see you,’ and then I’d move on. But he was fine.”
Knapp mentioned the school “took bullying and mental health very seriously, and they were very proactive to stop that kind of behavior”.
He told The U.S. Sun: “So unless it was happening in his home or on the internet, Thomas was definitely not bullied.”
Crooks’ former Bethel Park High classmate, Sarah D’Angelo, also argued against the bullying claims.
She said: “There were a few people that were more violent in school. He was not one of those kids.”
However, another ex-classmate, Mason Ripley, 18, has a different perspective and remembers Crooks being mocked in the hallways because he “wore hunting gear, like camo clothes, which was a bit weird”.
Although the motive has baffled many, Robert Wells – assistant director of the FBI counter-terrorism division – announced the attempted assassination of Trump was “an act of domestic terrorism”.
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