A 2020 High School yearbook shows the photo of Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Credit: Reuters Photo
FBI officials told members of Congress on Wednesday that the gunman who tried to kill former President Donald Trump used his cellphone and other devices to search images of Trump and President Joe Biden, along with an array of public figures.
The 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, also looked up dates of Trump’s appearances and the Democratic National Convention, according to people on two conference calls held to answer lawmakers’ questions.
And, at least once, his browsing history signaled concerns about his own mental state. He also seems to have previewed his attack on Steam, a gaming platform he frequented, telling fellow gamers he planned to make his “premiere” on July 13, the day of the shooting.
The disclosures, made during private briefings to lawmakers by the FBI and the head of the embattled Secret Service, offered the most complete portrait so far of a would-be assassin with no criminal history, or even clearly discernible political beliefs, who came close to killing Trump. Still, no clear motive for the attack has emerged.
The FBI has been scouring Crooks’ possessions since the shooting Saturday — including two phones and at least one laptop — for clues about his motive. So far, they have found no indication that Crooks, who was a registered Republican, had strong partisan political views one way or another, bureau officials told lawmakers.
Nor have they uncovered any evidence of co-conspirators or connections to foreign actors, two top bureau officials said during the tense calls in which members of the House and Senate demanded answers about a nearly catastrophic failure to safeguard Trump.
The officials told lawmakers that there was some indication that the gunman, who led a quiet life and worked at a nursing home near his house, might have been struggling with depression.
Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, acknowledged during one of the calls that her agency made serious “mistakes” and provided new information about Crooks’ movements during the shooting. She is scheduled to testify before the House Oversight Committee on Monday.
During the briefing with senators, officials ran through a timeline of events, noting that law enforcement officers had identified the gunman as suspicious about an hour before the shooting but then lost track of him, according to two people familiar with the contents of the briefing.
Some senators left their call angry with the Secret Service after learning that officers did not intervene before he opened fire.