The FBI announced that they have found a social media account that may be linked to Trump shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks, which could shed light on the motive behind his attempted assassination.
Little is known so far about Crooks and what prompted his shooting of Trump, which injured others and killed former firefighter Corey Comperatore on July 13.
The shocking developments in the investigation into the attempted assassination at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, were announced during a Senate hearing on Tuesday.
Congress called Ronald Rowe, the new acting director of the Secret Service, and the FBI’s number two, Deputy Director Paul Abbate, to testify about the shooting.
Abbate revealed that the FBI has discovered at least one social media account on an unnamed platform believed to be connected to Crooks. That account posted more than 700 comments between 2019 and 2020, he added.
“Some of these comments appear to reflect anti-Semitic and anti-immigration themes to promote political violence,” Abbate said.
Acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald L. Rowe, Jr. and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate are sworn in during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the attempted assassination of Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., July 30, 2024
He would not confirm the name of the social media platform until his agents could prove with 100% certainty that Crooks posted the messages.
Abbate said the messages were “extreme in nature,” but the FBI is still investigating whether the account actually belonged to Crooks.
He also revealed that the agency is still working to identify and infiltrate Crooks’ various “encrypted” accounts, which could shed light on his motive.
That angered Senator Lindsey Graham, who wanted more information about his motive.
“So you’re telling me that the man who shot the president eight times, the former president, has apps that we can’t access, but if we could, might reveal relevant information.”
“That’s right, Senator,” the officials replied.
Graham was concerned about this and later urged better methods for infiltrating encrypted accounts.
“We need a solution that provides legitimate access,” the officials noted, noting that current options only provide illegal access to Crooks’ suspicious accounts.
Thomas Crooks pictured in his 2020 high school yearbook. Little is known about the reclusive gunman
Footage shows police approaching the building where Crooks fired shots, minutes before he opened fire during the rally
Former President Donald Trump raises his fist after being shot in the ear by Crooks on July 13
In addition to the discoveries of the online accounts, the FBI’s number two revealed more about the timeline behind the assassination attempt.
“Approximately 25 minutes before the shooting, the U.S. Secret Service command center was notified of a suspicious person,” Abbate testified.
The acting director of the Secret Service also admitted he had no defense when asked why the roof where Crooks shot former President Trump was left open.
“I went to the roof of the AGR building where the attacker was firing shots and lay on my stomach to evaluate his line of sight.”
“What I saw embarrassed me as a career police officer and a 25-year veteran of the Secret Service. I can’t defend why that roof wasn’t better secured,” he told Congress Tuesday.
Crooks fired eight rounds at Trump, hitting him in the ear with one bullet.
“When I was in that position, I couldn’t, and I don’t, understand why there wasn’t better cover or at least no one looking at that roof line when they were posted there,” said Rowe, who noted that Crooks’ head would have been clearly visible from the unmanned roof.
Thirty seconds before Crooks fired his shots, local police radioed the Secret Service for warning of a man with a gun on the roof. About three and a half minutes earlier, he had been “seen on the roof.”
Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle will appear before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on July 23, 2024, to discuss Secret Service oversight. She resigned the day after the hearing
Rowe said he has implemented a number of changes at the Secret Service since the shooting, including security plans that are reviewed by multiple supervisors before being implemented, increased use of drones, increased resources for communications at secure locations and “quickly” approving requests for personnel at secure locations with heightened security.
Rowe and Abbate spoke to the Judiciary and Homeland Security committees after their boss, former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, resigned last week following a six-hour hearing in which Republicans and Democrats accused her of obstruction.
FBI and Secret Service officials also released a more precise timeline of events leading up to the shooting.
Nearly a week before the meeting, Crooks had scouted the event location, saying they spent 20 minutes there.
Just a day before the shooting, Crooks went to a shooting range to practice his shot.
On the morning of the July 13 meeting, Crooks again visited the site, officials said.
Abbate and Rowe also revealed what Crooks was doing on the day of the shooting and what actions authorities took.
Local police labeled Crooks a “suspicious” 90 minutes before he opened fire, authorities said.
The Secret Service was told that the potential assassin had been carrying a rangefinder 30 minutes before the shooting.
Minutes later, just 20 minutes before the shooting, the Secret Service’s anti-sniper team received a photo of the “suspect.”
Crooks was spotted on the roof 3.5 minutes before he opened fire.
Authorities also said that Crooks was seen on the roof with a gun 30 seconds before he fired his first shot.
“Within 15.5 seconds of his first shot, he was incapacitated,” Rowe testified about how quickly Crooks was killed after he opened fire.
FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate testified that the agency is still working to crack encrypted online accounts linked to Crooks
But before his first shot, the Secret Service had no idea where he was, the acting chief of the Secret Service said.
He noted that the snipers did not see him because he initially hid on the other side of the roof.
“I believe he was obstructed by that roof,” Rowe testified.