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.
Clairton, Pennsylvania – The Pennsylvania gun club where would-be Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks practiced his marksmanship opened Monday after FBI visits amid an investigation into the deadly security breach that allowed a gunman to get within 130 yards of the former president.
It was not immediately clear whether investigators found anything of evidentiary value at the shooting range, and members condemned the suspect and his actions as something their community “does not deal with.”
An attorney for the Clairton Sportsmen's Club previously distanced members from Crooks.
FORMER SECRET SERVICE AGENT WARNS THAT AGENCY IS 'OVERWHELMED' WITH NEW RESPONSIBILITIES AND SHORTAGE OF MANPOWER
A view of the Clairton Sportsmens Club, where Thomas Matthew Crooks, named by the FBI as the “subject involved” in the attempted assassination of former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, was a member, in Clairton, Pennsylvania, US, on July 15, 2024. (Carlos Osorio/Reuters)
“Obviously, the Club fully condemns the senseless act of violence that occurred. [Saturday]”The club also offers its sincere condolences to the Comperatore family and extends its prayers to all those injured, including the former president,” said attorney Rob Bootay in a statement.
The club is one of several in the area where members participate in sport shooting events and promote firearm safety.
The FBI visit comes as the bureau seeks to identify a motive and analyzes newly obtained data from the suspect's phone.
TRUMP RALLY SHOOTING SUSPECT IN PENNSYLVANIA PICTURED AFTER DEADLY ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
A view of the Clairton Sportsmen's Club, where Thomas Matthew Crooks, named by the FBI as the “subject involved” in the attempted assassination of former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, was a member, in Clairton, Pennsylvania, U.S., on July 15, 2024. (Carlos Osorio/Reuters)
Law enforcement sources with knowledge of the situation told Fox News that Crooks fired a DPMS AR-15 5.56 rifle at Trump and bystanders. His father purchased the gun in 2013.
He is in the FBI's forensic lab in Quantico, Virginia, along with his phone, laptop and at least one improvised explosive device from his car, according to sources.
TRUMP RALLY VICTIM COREY COMPERATORE DIED PROTECTING HIS FAMILY AND 'WOULD HAVE DONE IT AGAIN,' SAYS FRIEND
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by U.S. Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, Saturday, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The development comes as investigators expand their search for a motive and possible aides to the suspect.
“FBI technical specialists successfully gained access to Thomas Matthew Crooks' phone and are continuing to analyze his electronic devices,” the FBI said in a statement Monday afternoon.
Searches of the suspect's home and vehicle were completed Sunday night.
Pennsylvania Trump rally attendee speaks out about 'extremely lax' security measures following assassination attempt
This graphic shows an aerial view of Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, as well as the alleged assassin's vantage point. (Fox News)
The office also said the FBI had interviewed nearly 100 witnesses, including members of law enforcement.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to report it to 1-800-CALL-FBI.
FBI investigating Trump assassination attempt as possible domestic terrorist act
The Bethel Park School District can confirm that the suspected shooter in the July 13, 2024 assassination attempt on former President Donald J. 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)
The offenders had no criminal records and no documented history of mental illness, authorities said.
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Dave Katz, a former federal forearm instructor and CEO of Global Security Group, said if anyone had seen warning signs before the attack it would have been the people he spent the most time with, including friends, family, coworkers and classmates.
“If the shooter can maintain an air of normalcy going to and from the range, where's the red flag?” he told Fox News Digital. “Look at the Aurora [Colorado] The theater gunman. He had been at a shooting range three days earlier and the owner kicked him out because he wasn't behaving normally.
Fox News' CB Cotton, David Spunt and Jake Gibson contributed to this report.
