Full Breakdown
The Butler Assassination Attempt: New FBI Documents Reveal Shooter’s Background and Ongoing Dispute
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On July 13 2024, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks opened fire from a rooftop at a Donald Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. He discharged eight rounds from a Panther Arms A-15 semiautomatic rifle, grazing Trump’s right ear, killing rally attendee Corey Comperatore, and wounding two others. Secret Service agents returned fire, killing Crooks on the scene.
Background & Context
FBI interviews with Crooks’ father, Matthew Crooks, obtained by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, describe a childhood marked by extreme quietness and limited emotional expression. Matthew said Thomas was “always quiet,” talked to himself, and was “hard to read.” He noted periods of boredom-driven misbehavior in elementary school and a brief association with a “bad” peer group.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Thomas began frequenting a gun club. After several years of practice, he became capable of hitting targets over 100 yards and purchased a prism sight to zero in on distant targets.
Data & Statistics
- Age of shooter: 20 years.
- Date of attack: July 13 2024.
- Shots fired: eight rounds.
- Casualties: 1 fatal (Corey Comperatore), 2 injured, President Trump grazed in the ear.
- Digital footprint: investigators accessed 35 online accounts, including foreign-based email accounts in Germany and Belgium, and reviewed over 500,000 electronic files.
Official Statements & Responses
- Former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino asserted, “We have reviewed this case over and over … there is no cover-up here.”
- President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that the investigation was “missing, altered, corrupted, or gone” and labeled the incident a “Democratic plot” aimed at removing him from office, calling former FBI Director Christopher Wray a “Dirty Cop.”
Criticism & Opposition
General Todd Blanche questioned the FBI’s pre-event preparedness, stating, “It’s not really clear what the leadership of the FBI were doing in the weeks and months ahead of the attempted assassination to protect President Trump.”
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- FBI conclusion: Crooks acted alone, with no foreign or organizational direction.
- Trump’s claim: The president alleges a coordinated “Democratic plot” and accuses the FBI of mishandling evidence.
- Digital-footprint controversy: Early FBI statements suggested Crooks had “almost no digital footprint,” but later releases identified extensive online activity, including a 2020 YouTube comment discussing violent tactics. The discrepancy remains unresolved.
Verbatim Quotes
- “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,” — Thomas Matthew Crooks
- “Using carbon fiber plastic, a dryer and a toaster oven, Thomas did once create a Glock 19,” — Thomas Matthew Crooks
- “We fully briefed the president, as a victim of this case, at the White House, providing him with all of the details of our investigation, and the president was satisfied with the results and where we left it,” — Kash Patel, FBI director
What’s Next
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley continues to review the newly released documents, with FBI Director Kash Patel scheduled to testify before the committee in the coming weeks. Lawmakers are expected to examine the agency’s handling of digital evidence and security protocols, while the White House has not responded to media inquiries regarding the president’s recent accusations.