Thomas Matthew Crooks may have kept tabs on former President Donald Trump’s campaign appearance schedule for months leading up to Saturday’s deadly rally shooting, a source with knowledge of the investigation told The Post.
Crooks apparently tracked Trump’s movements from as far back as the spring using the internet. It was not immediately known if, or how, he documented Trump’s travels, and there is nothing to suggest Crooks followed the campaign anywhere in person.
Authorities so far have not found any definitive indicators that Crooks’ attempted assassination of the 2024 GOP presidential candidate, 78, was motivated by any particular political ideology or candidate.
Evidence collected from one of his phones has turned up photos of both Trump and President Biden, as well as several other notable figures, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and former Republican New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Crooks, 20, a social outcast who reportedly had few friends, may have also been struggling with an undiagnosed mental health condition — potentially depression — which he had researched online, a source told The Post.
The gunman also had virtually no social media or online footprint — forcing investigators to search his devices including a laptop, two phones and USB drives with a combined 4.5 terabytes of data.