Newly surfaced FBI documents describing the upbringing of Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old who opened fire at a Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, offer the most detailed portrait yet of the gunman’s life before the attack that killed one rally attendee and wounded two others before Crooks was shot dead by Secret Service agents.
The records were provided to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) as part of his ongoing inquiry into the shooting and were reviewed by the New York Post. They include an FBI interview with Crooks’ father, Matthew, conducted two days after the attack, along with an interview with another person whose name was redacted.
According to his father, Crooks was notably quiet from birth. “When Thomas was born he did not scream and he was always quiet from that point on,” Matthew told investigators. Matthew said he never developed a strong father-son bond with his son, who rarely showed emotion and was difficult to read.
Childhood and school years
Matthew said Crooks occasionally acted out in elementary school out of boredom, including one incident where he damaged a desk and other school property. By middle school, both parents suspected he had ADHD and worried he had briefly fallen in with a troubling group of peers.
Matthew recalled one incident at home in which Crooks, after an argument, dumped an entire container of fish food into his sister’s betta tank. Matthew said he “pushed” his son until he cried, in an attempt to draw out some emotional response.
Between his freshman and sophomore years of high school, Crooks became quieter and had difficulty speaking with teachers, his father said. Matthew also noticed Crooks talking to himself, a habit that grew more noticeable over time. Matthew said work schedules limited his ability to drive his son to extracurricular activities, which he believes could have provided a social outlet.
Academically, Crooks put significant pressure on himself, fearing he might not get into college. He scored 1400 on his first SAT attempt without studying and later improved to 1500. His father said Crooks expressed passing interest in various careers, including at one point wanting to work on nuclear submarines because he thought it would be “cool,” but showed little real commitment to any path.
Interest in firearms
Crooks began showing interest in guns as a teenager, though he had little interest in the broader outdoor lifestyle; he briefly considered hunting but, according to his father, could not picture himself killing an animal, and he disliked fishing. Conversations between father and son were often brief and centered on firearms, including questions about background checks for buying his father’s Glock and about inheriting his grandfather’s guns.
Crooks started visiting a gun club around the start of the pandemic and was, in his father’s words, a “terrible” shot who initially could not hit the target. Matthew estimated it took four to five years of practice before his son improved. Crooks later brought home targets from ranges showing accuracy at distances over 100 yards, telling his father he wanted to see how far he could shoot using basic sights. After buying a prism sight, he became skilled at calculating adjustments needed to hit distant targets.
As his interest in firearms deepened, Crooks began ordering parts and tools to modify his rifle’s capacity through frequent Amazon purchases. He used the pseudonym “Bob Dole” for deliveries, a practice his father said stemmed from paranoia after fraudulent BetMGM charges appeared on Matthew’s Citizens Bank account. Crooks believed ordering under an assumed name would prevent hacking, a theory his father said was mistaken since the same bank account would still be charged. Crooks also used privacy tools such as CyberGhost VPN, the Bravenet browser, and encrypted email services including GMX and Mailfence.
Crooks acquired a 3D printer and, using carbon fiber plastic along with a dryer and toaster oven, built a Glock 19. After firing a single round from it, Matthew said he grew concerned the frame could explode and stopped his son from using it further. Crooks also built his own gaming PC and a security camera using a Raspberry Pi microcomputer.
Personality and politics
Matthew told investigators his son’s likely role model was the Marvel character Iron Man. A separate interview subject described Crooks as a “big history buff” interested in politics, though he discussed the subject in a “nonchalant” fashion, often talking about former President Trump, former President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Matthew said his son did not strongly align with either political party and that the two would often “make fun of the politicians” they discussed. “Thomas called himself a Republican. Thomas did not like the welfare state and was against the ‘woke’ ideology but never really espoused the Republican ideology,” Matthew said, adding that his son preferred debating government policy broadly.
Crooks was registered as a Republican, which his father believed was influenced by his own political affiliation. Matthew said he was more openly critical of Trump’s policies than his son and criticized both Trump and Biden equally. He said he was surprised to learn Crooks had donated $15 to the Progressive Turnout Project, a Democratic organizing group, in 2021. Matthew also said his son was shocked by the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and did not believe the 2020 election was rigged.
Crooks reportedly never showed interest in girls and repeatedly denied being gay when asked over the years, according to his father.
He was an avid gamer in high school, playing military strategy and first-person shooter games, though he lost interest after graduating and later expressed regret over the time spent building his gaming computer. He enjoyed films including “Saving Private Ryan,” “Full Metal Jacket,” “Heartbreak Ridge,” “Anger Management” and the “John Wick” series. His music tastes shifted from rap and country in elementary school toward country in high school, and Matthew recalled his son sometimes dancing alone in his room with the door closed.
Matthew told investigators the family never saw warning signs and has struggled to understand what led Crooks to attempt to assassinate Trump. “Thomas never showed any signs indicating something was wrong,” he said.
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