Matthew Crooks was seen for the first time since his son tried to assassinate Trump. He was photographed outside the family’s Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, home when federal investigators visited him Monday morning.
Clearly exhausted, his eyes betraying the tension and trauma of the past few days, Crooks opened the door shortly before 10 a.m. to several FBI members entering the nondescript brick house.
It was just three days ago that the Crooks family’s world was turned upside down by the shocking events of Saturday afternoon, when their son Thomas Matthew, 20, opened fire on the former president as he spoke to a rally of supporters in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Matthew, 53, who works as a licensed behavioral therapist specializing in rehabilitation, spoke to CNN shortly after his son was identified. He seemed completely taken aback, trying to make sense of what he had just been told.
Late Saturday night, Crooks Sr. was contacted by the network and said he was still trying to figure out “what the hell is going on,” but said he would “wait until I talk to the police” before talking about his son.
Clearly exhausted, his eyes showing the tension and trauma of the past few days, Crooks opened the door to several members of the FBI who entered the nondescript brick house shortly before 10 a.m.
It’s been barely 48 hours since the Crooks family’s world was torn apart by the shocking events of Saturday afternoon. Their home is seen here
He and the rest of the shooter’s immediate family have not spoken publicly since. Crooks’ mother, Mary Elizabeth, 53, is also a behavioral therapist.
It is believed that Crooks was using an AR-15 that his father had purchased about six months earlier. Both men were believed to be members of the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club in Clairton, Pennsylvania.
Thomas Crooks, 20, opened fire on the former president as he spoke to a rally of supporters in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday
When Bill Sellitto, 77, the chairman of the DailyMail.com club, approached him, he was clearly emotional and deeply shocked by his club’s involvement in an act he described as “appalling”.
He said, ‘This is not us. We are a community. We have a youth day coming up, over 100 kids. Members of five different police forces are training with us, we support them and they are part of our community.’
The club, of which Crooks is a recognised member, is set in 180 hectares of woodland, has over 2,000 members and has facilities including indoor and outdoor archery ranges, rifle ranges up to 200 metres, pistol ranges and dog training areas.
FBI agents spoke with the Crooks family for several minutes before canvassing the neighborhood and speaking with residents.
Neighbors were asked to leave their homes after explosives and other items were taken from both Crooks’ van and his home.
Crooks parked his vehicle near the rally site in Butler on Saturday before climbing onto the roof of a nearby industrial manufacturing building.
A fortuitous turn of Trump’s head, seen here moments after the incident, and not the quick reaction of those snipers, was what made the difference between a grazing shot from Crooks and a fatal one.
It wasn’t the quick reaction of nearby snipers, but a chance turn of Trump’s head that made the difference between a glancing blow and a killing shot.
Corey Comperatore, a 55-year-old father of two and volunteer fire chief, has been named as the audience member who died while shielding his family from the gunfire.
Two other spectators who were hit, 57-year-old David Dutch and 74-year-old James Copenhaver, were both in stable condition on Sunday.
Crooks was killed by the USSS seconds after opening fire on the former president and presumptive Republican presidential candidate.
The would-be assassin was a registered Republican and a high school senior set to graduate in 2022. Documents show that on Inauguration Day in 2020, he made a donation to a progressive group supporting President Joe Biden.
Bethel Park School District, where Crooks attended school until two years ago, has verified his high school diploma and is cooperating with investigators.
Since then, disturbing anecdotes have emerged from people who knew Crooks from his school days.
Bethel Park police officers talk outside Crooks’ home Monday morning after the shooting last weekend
Members of the FBI Evidence Response Team work near the building where Crooks was shot and killed by police
Crooks auditioned for the school’s shooting team but was rejected because he was a poor shot, said Frederick Mach, the team’s current captain who was a few years behind Crooks in school.
Jonathan Myers, a member of the team at the time of Crooks’ audition, said there was something ominous about him.
Crooks was a nutritional assistant at Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where he provided food and care to the elderly and sick who had just been discharged from the hospital.
His employer confirmed on Sunday that he had a clean record and was “doing his job without worry” before trying to kill Trump.
Investigators found no threatening social media comments or ideological views that could explain why he targeted Trump.
Leading Republicans and Democrats have demanded an urgent investigation into the shooting, saying routine checks could have ruled out any threats.
In a scathing statement Saturday night, FBI agent Kevin Rojek said it was “surprising” that Crooks managed to fire so many shots.
Crooks was a nutritional assistant at Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where he provided food and care to the elderly and infirm after hospitalization.
On Sunday evening, footage emerged showing supporters outside the security zone pointing at Crooks as he crawled across the roof of the building.
“Look, they’re all pointing,” you hear the man behind the camera say as the camera pans from the stage to the roof of the warehouse, where a figure is crawling.
“He’s on the roof!” a woman shouts 40 seconds into the video, as Trump continues his speech in the background.
Several witnesses said they alerted police that a gunman was crawling across the building, but they did not respond before he began shooting.
Afterward, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said the agency is now making changes to Trump’s security.
Cheatle, who was appointed by President Biden in 2022, expressed confidence in a new plan ahead of this week’s Republican Party convention in Milwaukee.