The father of Thomas Matthew Crooks, the shooter of Donald Trump, has spoken out for the first time since his son was shot dead while trying to kill the former president.
Matthew Brian Crooks, 53, was seen leaving a grocery store with an unknown woman in Pennsylvania on Monday, carrying a cart full of goods.
“We just want to try to take care of ourselves right now. Please give us our space,” Crooks said Fox News Digital.
The father declined to comment further, but said the family will eventually release a statement if “our lawyer advises us to do so.”
Crooks’ son, Thomas, attempted to kill Trump with his father’s gun at a rally in Butler. He was shot dead by Secret Service personnel within seconds of firing the first shot.
Matthew Brian Crooks, 53, asked for the family’s privacy as he spoke for the first time since his 20-year-old son was shot dead in the attempted assassination of the former president.
Crooks’ son, Thomas, attempted to assassinate Donald Trump, 78, with his father’s gun while the politician was speaking at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. He was shot dead by the Secret Service within seconds of firing his first shot
Crooks, a registered Libertarian, legally purchased the AR-15 his son used in the attack that left the 45th president with a bullet wound to his ear.
Crooks and his wife Mary had called police hours before the shooting, saying they were concerned for his welfare and that he was missing.
The Crooks family works with the FBI to discover Thomas’ motive.
Thomas had searched the Internet for the dates of the Democratic and Republican National Conventions and had several photos of politicians — including Trump and President Joe Biden — on his phone. He also searched for major depressive disorder.
The deceased gunman was also a member of the local shooting club and had purchased ammunition prior to the attack, prompting Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign.
Trump’s former doctor Ronny L Jackson, 57, revealed it was an ‘absolute miracle he wasn’t assassinated’
The motive for the shooting is still unknown, but a former high school classmate, Vincent Taormina, revealed that the 20-year-old had a strong disdain for politicians.
Taormina also exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com that Thomas had threatened to shoot up their high school, but it was not taken seriously.
“We had a kind of anonymous place where you could post things or rat someone out on our computers at school. He would post, like, ‘Don’t come to school tomorrow,’ and something else that made it look like he had put bombs in the toilets in the school cafeteria.
“Half of us just didn’t come to school the next day – including me. But that wasn’t taken seriously,” he continued. “We all texted each other and it quickly turned out that it was Thomas and his group of friends who had made the threats to shoot. [the school] upwards.’
The July 13 assassination attempt nearly killed the former president. Also killed was 50-year-old retired fire chief Corey Comperatore, a father of two, and two others were seriously injured.
Former Marine David Dutch, 57, was shot in the chest and liver and has undergone two surgeries. The family of the other victim, James Copenhaver, 74, has asked for privacy as they process the “life-changing” injuries he sustained.
Trump’s former physician Ronny L. Jackson, 57, said it was “an absolute miracle he wasn’t assassinated.”
“I am deeply grateful that his life was spared,” Jackson wrote in a letter dated Saturday, uploaded to Truth Social by Trump.
According to the doctor, Trump suffered a two-centimeter gunshot wound in last week’s assassination attempt.
Jackson said the Republican candidate in Pennsylvania had to undergo a CT scan of his head after the bullet hit his ear and that he was still suffering from “intermittent bleeding.” He must therefore keep his bandage on, which has become a symbol of solidarity among his supporters.
The memo by former White House physician Ronny Jackson, now a right-wing Texas lawmaker, is one of the first detailed accounts of the injury Trump suffered.
The 45th President of the United States was initially treated at Butler Memorial Hospital in Pennsylvania. Jackson praised the hospital for its “excellent care” and “excellent work in evaluating and treating his wound.”