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From Fox News: Thomas Matthew Crooks’ parents were looking for him on Saturday in the hours leading up to the Trump rally shooting and eventually called law enforcement to indicate that he was missing and they were worried, Fox News has learned.
It’s unclear what his parents told authorities, but the call happened on Saturday before Crooks later opened fire at Trump during the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The parents are being cooperative with authorities and the FBI is still trying to determine a motive for the attack, sources also told Fox News.
WATCH:
WTH is this about pic.twitter.com/lR6ypitfqo
— Karli Bonne’ 🇺🇸 (@KarluskaP) July 17, 2024
CNN separately reported that Crooks had requested to be off work on Saturday, and had told his colleagues that he would return on Sunday.
Crooks reportedly told his boss he needed that the day off on Saturday because he had “something to do.”
CNN: 3 hours before shooting, security caught Crooks with a rangefinder. https://t.co/K4SrktuOAG pic.twitter.com/YF26wWp2ub
— J Michael Waller (@JMichaelWaller) July 17, 2024
Crooks spotted 3 hrs before shooting “By 3 p.m. on Saturday..Crooks was at security screening..aroused suspicion when passed through the magnetometers carrying a rangefinder..used by hunters and target shooters” for “setting up a long-range shot” https://t.co/ExIxN6zktw
— Elizabeth MacDonald (@LizMacDonaldFOX) July 17, 2024
Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk wrote on social media Wednesday:
Okay this is just getting ridiculous. It’s now come out that the Trump shooter, Thomas Matthews Crook, was spotted by Secret Service THREE HOURS before Trump’s rally, carrying a rangefinder used by hunters (or snipers) to take long-range shots.
Their response? Apparently, nothing. Nobody stopped him, nobody questioned him, and nobody was ready to halt the event when Crook reappeared on a rooftop during the event itself.
“Eh, no big deal, full speed ahead on the rally. Oh, and don’t put anybody on that roof 400 ft from Trump. It has a slope and we wouldn’t want anyone getting hurt!”
Unreal.
https://dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13643655/Secret-Service-spotted-Thomas-Crooks-hunting-rangefinder-inside-Trump-rally-THREE-HOURS-shooting.html
Okay this is just getting ridiculous. It’s now come out that the Trump shooter, Thomas Matthews Crook, was spotted by Secret Service THREE HOURS before Trump’s rally, carrying a rangefinder used by hunters (or snipers) to take long-range shots.
Their response? Apparently,…
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) July 17, 2024
Trump would-be assassin climbed air conditioning unit to access shooting perch: reporthttps://t.co/DSi3ruc25y
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 17, 2024