The 20-year-old Pennsylvania man who allegedly tried to assassinate Donald Trump may have posted a warning on a message board for gamers.
“July 13 will be my premiere, watch as it unfolds,” Thomas Matthew Crooks appeared to have written in a message on the platform Steam, according to ABC News.
But CBS News said Thursday the account seemed to be “fake,” according to their sources.
Authorities seized Crooks’ electronic devices and conducted numerous interviews to learn what caused Crooks to fire shots at the Republican nominee for president during a Saturday night rally in west Pennsylvania.
One bullet appeared to have grazed Trump’s ear. Three Trump followers were hit by gunfire. One of those men died.
Crooks, a registered Republican, was reportedly raised by a Libertarian father and Democrat mother in a home neighbors said once displayed signage supporting Trump. The AR-15 Crooks allegedly used to fire at Trump belonged to his dad, according to the Associated Press.
The alleged shooter was not old enough to vote in the last presidential election. He reportedly contributed $15 to an organization linked to progressive causes when Biden was elected.
Investigators who seized his electronic devices reportedly discovered that Crooks researched information about Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania and looked up dates connected to the Democratic National Committee’s convention taking place next month in Chicago.
Fox News reported Thursday that Crooks stashed a rifle near the perch from where he fired shots at Trump. That claim hasn’t been verified. There’s no indication his efforts involved accomplices. More than a dozen guns were found in Crooks’ home, according to NBC News.
Crooks also had an account on the gaming platform Discord that the company said was rarely used and gave no indication its owner was capable of violence.
The FBI is heading the investigation. Crooks’ motive remains unknown.
With News Wire Services
