Thomas Crooks' neighbor speaks out
Kelly Little, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, told Fox News Digital that she rarely met the family of the Trump shooting suspect despite living across the street from them.
While investigators have yet to determine his motive, the picture of the 20-year-old man who tried to assassinate former President Trump is becoming clearer as his former classmates come forward with their impressions.
Few people applauded as slim, bespectacled Thomas Matthew Crooks received his diploma at his 2022 Bethel Park High School graduation, a YouTube video of the ceremony shows.
Former colleagues who have spoken out since he was shot and killed by Secret Service agents on Saturday have characterized the Pennsylvania resident as a quiet loner.
Jason Kohler, who attended the same high school as Crooks, described him to Fox News as an “outcast” who was always alone and “bullied every day.”
PARENTS OF TRUMP SHOOTER THOMAS MATTHEW CROOKS REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS IN PENNSYLVANIA: RECORDS
An undated image of Thomas Matthew Crooks. (Released via AFP)
Kohler told reporters that Crooks would sit alone at lunch and was teased for his attire, which often included “hunting suits.”
Julianna Grooms, who graduated a year after Crooks, also said he would dress in camouflage or hunting clothing and act awkward.
“If someone said something to his face, he would just stare at them,” Grooms told the Wall Street Journal. “People would say he was the student who shot up the school.”
“He was a nerdy kid, but I don't think he was bullied as badly as some people say,” Mark Sigafoos, who shared two classes with Crooks, told the Inquirer. “He never wore a trench coat or anything like that to school.”
“He never openly talked about his political views or how much he hated Trump or anything like that,” Sarah D'Angelo, another classmate of Crooks at Bethel Park High, told the outlet. During class, before they started, she recalled Crooks was playing on his laptop.
FBI has gained access to Thomas Matthew Crooks' phone in Trump assassination attempt
The Bethel Park School District can confirm that the alleged shooter in the July 13, 2024 assassination attempt on former President Trump is a Bethel Park High School graduate. Thomas Matthew Crooks graduated from Bethel Park High School with the class of 2022. (Bethel Park School District)
“I think it's one of those things you don't expect from him,” Sigafoos continued. “No one I know has ever said they thought of him as a creepy, lonely guy.”
According to a Tribune-Review article from his graduating year, Crooks received the 2022 National Math & Science Initiative Star Award. Sigafoos said his now-infamous classmate helped him when he didn't understand course material and was “very kind.”
Sigafoos did not recall Crooks making political statements in class, saying he seemed interested in how the government works but did not try to “insert his own beliefs into it.”
“I was shocked,” Sigafoos added. “None of my friends can imagine that a guy we knew would try to kill Trump.”
Max R. Smith, who said he took an American history course with Crooks as a sophomore, said Crooks made political statements but did not explain his actions Saturday.
DISCORD REVEALS DETAILS OF THE ACCOUNT OF THE POSSIBLE TRUMP ASSASSIN ON THE PLATFORM
Republican presidential candidate former President Trump is surrounded by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“He was definitely a conservative,” he told the Inquirer. “I wonder why he tried to assassinate a conservative candidate.”
In one mock debate, Smith recalled, his professor asked students to stand on one side or the other of the room to signal their support or opposition to different proposals.
“Most of the class was on the liberal side, but Tom, no matter what he did, always stood firmly on the conservative side,” Smith said. “That's the image I have of him. Just standing alone on one side while the rest of the class was on the other.”
“Everyone is in shock,” Smith said. “He was so quiet that I couldn't imagine him doing that. But I guess it was the same with Columbine.”
PENNSYLVANIA GUN CLUB WHERE TRUMP'S ASSASSIN WAS A MEMBER WAS VISITED BY FBI
Thomas Matthew Crooks graduated from Bethel Park High School, pictured, in 2022. (Google Maps)
Crooks filed for unemployment in 2020 but most recently worked as a dietary aide at Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, a state-licensed transitional center.
Center administrator Marcie Grimm said in a statement Sunday that Crooks “performed his job without concern” and that his background check was clean.
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ABC News reported that Crooks attempted to join his school's gun club but was turned away and asked not to return, according to team members at the time.
He belonged to the Clairton Sportsmen's Club, which the FBI visited as part of its investigation.
