PA - Assassination attempt, shooting injures former POTUS Donald Trump, leaves 1 spectator deceased two in critical condition, 13 July 2024 #2

[DS2021]

"As investigators continue to search for a motive behind the attempted assassination, they are scrutinizing Crooks’ movements before the attack and trying to piece together a timeline of his actions leading up to it.

Yet nearly 48 hours after the shooting, investigators are struck by the lack of leads they’re finding about Crooks’ mindset and possible motives. Even after successfully breaking into his phone and searching his computer, scouring his search history and bedroom, and interviewing his family and friends, agents still haven’t found evidence that would suggest political or ideological impetus for the shooting, law enforcement sources told CNN.

Instead, the evidence they have found appears to show typical online activities including an interest in computer coding and gaming, the sources said — and that has raised more questions.

In a sign that his attack could have been even more destructive, Crooks had a remote control detonator on his body, and his car’s trunk contained a metal box of explosives that was connected with wires to a receiver, the law enforcement source said.

That suggests the gunman may have been planning to set off an explosion remotely, and investigators are considering the theory that he may have been planning a distraction during the shooting.

It’s unclear how Crooks assembled the explosive devices found in his car. Investigators parsing through his online search history haven’t found any indication of him researching how to make home-made explosives, law enforcement officials said.;

https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/15/us/thomas-crooks-trump-rally-shooting-invs/index.html

Were they assembled correctly, or did he just wing it?

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1813205868717990098

 

[whowy]

My questions: if he was doing it for the notoriety, why make it so difficult to identify him?
Was the vehicle he drove there registered to him?
Was he of legal age to purchase the type of firearm he used? If so, why didn't he buy his own? Or, wait a few months until he was of age?
If no social media or phone indicators of motive/ radicalization - was there someone he encountered face-to-face that either encouraged or was informed of his plans?

 

[Elley Mae]

He used an AR-style rifle that was registered to his father. The weapon – as well as the over 20 other guns registered to Matthew Crooks – was purchased legally.

Investigators found an explosive device in Crooks’ car and a transmitter on his body, suggesting that he may have intended to stage a distraction during the shooting.

Inside what Trump’s would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks did in the 24 hours before rally shooting

Thomas Matthew Crooks ran a series of errands in the day before he opened fire at the Butler Farm Show grounds.

nypost.com

 

[kuromiiiilove]

My questions: if he was doing it for the notoriety, why make it so difficult to identify him?
Was the vehicle he drove there registered to him?
Was he of legal age to purchase the type of firearm he used? If so, why didn't he buy his own? Or, wait a few months until he was of age?
If no social media or phone indicators of motive/ radicalization - was there someone he encountered face-to-face that either encouraged or was informed of his plans?

This has been on my mind as well. At this time, I feel like he was either capable of wiping his internet activity himself, or perhaps if another person radicalized him, they were able to instruct him (or access his computer themselves). This seems so atypical for a young white male shooter. Notoriety is usually a goal… IMO MOO

 

[Arkay]

“Some people say it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack,” he added. “That’s not really it. A better way to think about it is to try and predict which piece of hay is going to become a needle.”

I like this analogy from the FBI guy.
Well-put.
Also, of course, the needle is able to move around, making it even more difficult to spot.

 

[whowy]

This has been on my mind as well. At this time, I feel like he was either capable of wiping his internet activity himself, or perhaps if another person radicalized him, they were able to instruct him (or access his computer themselves). This seems so atypical for a young white male shooter. Notoriety is usually a goal… IMO MOO

Also wondering whether any keys were found on him ? Storage space, or 2nd vehicle waiting for get-away while LE busy attending to the wounded, etc?
Was the building's roof metal? How could his movement atop the roof not be heard by LE if they were positioned inside?

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

Also wondering whether any keys were found on him ? Storage space, or 2nd vehicle waiting for get-away while LE busy attending to the wounded, etc?
Was the building's roof metal? How could his movement atop the roof not be heard by LE if they were positioned inside?

Good question about the metal roof.

Also - was his phone found on him or next to him? Or had he tossed that somewhere on the grounds, trying to hide it?

 

[Cryptic]

The venue was chosen by the campaign- it was accessible and had many pluses. SS can give a safety assessment but they can't tell the campaign to reject a venue.

I fundamentally agree with your point. If candidates want to be safe, they need to follow professional guidance.

And now, a "but".....

Its not as if the shooter fired from a distant wood line, or in an urban setting from one of dozens of high rise building in the area.

Rather, the shooter was on roof 425 feet or so from the candidate. There were very few buildings in the area. As a result, it is far more reasonable that the Secret Service would have secured the say 5 roofs in the immediate area.

If they could not do it, they should have coordinated with the local police to have somebody on each roof top. Then advise the counter sniper marksmen that there would be somebody on the roof tops and what they would be wearing.

 

[IDK]

I fundamentally agree with your point. If candidates want to be safe, they need to follow professional guidance.

And now, a "but".....

Its not as if the shooter fired from a distant wood line, or in an urban setting from one of dozens of high rise building in the area.

Rather, the shooter was on roof 425 feet or so from the candidate. There were very few buildings in the area. As a result, it is far more reasonable that the Secret Service would have secured the say 5 roofs in the immediate area.

If they could not do it, they should have coordinated with the local police to have somebody on each roof top. Then advise the counter sniper marksmen that there would be somebody on the roof tops and what they would be wearing.

Agree with this! Moreover, if secret service feels they will not be able to provide adequate protection at a specific venue, even with the help of local LE, they have a duty to inform the campaign that it is unsafe.

I don’t feel this is the fault of the campaign or the candidate. There’s no evidence that they ignored advice from secret service. All IMO.

 

[Niner]

Totally off-the-wall comment, I know.....but TC kinda sorta looks like Lee Harvey Oswald. I wonder if anyone said that to him while he was working on his JFK assassination project and a seed grew?

There is no known evidence of that, I know. I'm pondering aloud.

jmo

Now that is an interesting thought!

 

[Cryptic]

Is it necessary to gain certain grades to follow on to a Bachelor's degree after an Associate degree? Just wondering if that had been his intention but he didn't make the grade.

Yes. Associates degrees are commonly earned at Community Colleges. Bachelor's degrees are commonly earned at four year, or "full" colleges.

Many four year colleges require a certain GPA to accept credits transferred from a community college. Depending on the university, the required GPA can be relatively nominal, or it can be relatively higher.

But... At the end of the day, a lot of four year colleges are suffering financially, so they don't like turning people away. Then factor in that state law can dictate that public four year colleges must accept junior college credits.

Thus, I bet the required GPA can range from say, 2.0 to 3.0 or so, depending on the four year college and perhaps, the intended major.

 

[SMK777]

Thomas Matthew Crooks was spotted on roof by law enforcement nearly 30 minutes before attempted Trump assassination: report​

Thomas Matthew Crooks was spotted on roof by law enforcement nearly 30 minutes before attempted Trump assassination: report

Trump gunman Thomas Crooks was spotted on the roof a building with a clear sightline to the former president nearly 30 minutes before he opened fire — but they failed to confront him, according to …

nypost.com

 

[Elley Mae]

Totally off-the-wall comment, I know.....but TC kinda sorta looks like Lee Harvey Oswald. I wonder if anyone said that to him while he was working on his JFK assassination project and a seed grew?

There is no known evidence of that, I know. I'm pondering aloud.

jmo

A thought I had was his failure to make the rifle team in school.

..

Myers told ABC News Crooks had tried to join their high school's rifle team, but was rejected and told not to try out again.

"He didn't just not make the team, he was asked not to come back because how bad of a shot he was, it was considered like, dangerous," Myers said.

A classmate of the Trump shooter says the gunman was such a bad shot he got rejected from their high school rifle team

"He was asked not to come back because how bad of a shot he was, it was considered like, dangerous," the classmate told ABC News.

www.businessinsider.com

 

[indicolite22]

...those who knew him growing up said he was a lonely boy who people picked on.

Former classmate Julianna Grooms, 19, told the New York Times: 'Kids would always say, "Hey, look at the school shooter over there!"

Moment Trump shooter is bullied at school - classmates reveal nickname

New video footage has revealed that Donald Trump gunman Thomas Crooks was teased at high school,

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[DS2021]

Former classmate Julianna Grooms, 19, told the New York Times: 'Kids would always say, "Hey, look at the school shooter over there!"

I wouldnt read too much into that. Kids can be cruel

 

[photoprose1122]

"As investigators continue to search for a motive behind the attempted assassination, they are scrutinizing Crooks’ movements before the attack and trying to piece together a timeline of his actions leading up to it.

Yet nearly 48 hours after the shooting, investigators are struck by the lack of leads they’re finding about Crooks’ mindset and possible motives. Even after successfully breaking into his phone and searching his computer, scouring his search history and bedroom, and interviewing his family and friends, agents still haven’t found evidence that would suggest political or ideological impetus for the shooting, law enforcement sources told CNN.

Instead, the evidence they have found appears to show typical online activities including an interest in computer coding and gaming, the sources said — and that has raised more questions.

In a sign that his attack could have been even more destructive, Crooks had a remote control detonator on his body, and his car’s trunk contained a metal box of explosives that was connected with wires to a receiver, the law enforcement source said.

That suggests the gunman may have been planning to set off an explosion remotely, and investigators are considering the theory that he may have been planning a distraction during the shooting.

It’s unclear how Crooks assembled the explosive devices found in his car. Investigators parsing through his online search history haven’t found any indication of him researching how to make home-made explosives, law enforcement officials said.;

https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/15/us/thomas-crooks-trump-rally-shooting-invs/index.html

Just a pondering - since he was allegedly seen hanging around the magnetometers, I wonder if he planned on sneaking the metal box into the rally and detonating it remotely. But he decided he wouldn’t be able to get it past security, so he went for the gun/rooftop instead.

 

[NuttMegg]

One box wouldn't raise any eyebrows, in my opinion. What I found curious is he bought them THAT DAY. I find that rather interesting, though not sure what conclusions, if any, we can draw.

Was shooting into a crowd a fantasy plan that at the very last minute he decided to go ahead with since the Trump rally was convenient?

He took his dad's gun so I guess this also shows his dad didn't store ammo with the gun.

Or, did the kid practice in the days before the rally and run out of ammo?

jmo

Just to clarify, I do think he targeted Trump specifically while at the same time I think he simply wanted to shoot in a shocking way and die by cop/sniper.

I don't know of any cautionary laws flagging the purchase of ammo, regardless of planned rallies.
Has it been released, how they were able to locate his car so quickly? If dna id'd him quickly then it must has been a la kohberger? Thru close family's dna in the 23 db's etc? The dmv disclosed ownership of auto? I saw that the family was cooperating. Does anyone know the sequence in the id of the guy?

 

[SMK777]

Just a pondering - since he was allegedly seen hanging around the magnetometers, I wonder if he planned on sneaking the metal box into the rally and detonating it remotely. But he decided he wouldn’t be able to get it past security, so he went for the gun/rooftop instead.

Sounds plausible.

 

[MassGuy]

Just a pondering - since he was allegedly seen hanging around the magnetometers, I wonder if he planned on sneaking the metal box into the rally and detonating it remotely. But he decided he wouldn’t be able to get it past security, so he went for the gun/rooftop instead.

I could see that. If it was in fact him, I think one of two things was going on.

He thought about sneaking explosives in (the gun would have been out of the question).

He was attempting to figure out where Trump would be, so he could find the best place to shoot from.