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By Rachel Dobkin
Weekend Reporter
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Thomas Crooks had conducted internet searches for mass shooter Ethan Crumbley, major political figures and political events such as the Trump rally where he shot Donald Trump, according to a report.
He also searched for the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
Trump, the GOP presidential nominee as of Monday, was struck by a bullet that pierced his right ear, at the campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last Saturday evening, after Crooks, 20, opened fire on the crowded outdoor event from a nearby rooftop.
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A Secret Service counter-sniper killed Crooks immediately after the shots were fired. One rally attendee, 50-year-old former firefighter Corey Comperatore, was killed in the shooting and two more were seriously injured, according to the Secret Service.
Law enforcement officials revealed new details about the shooting in a briefing with lawmakers on Wednesday, according to CNN. Investigators found Crumbley's mugshot on Crooks' cellphone, as well as information about Crumbley and his parents.
Crumbley was 15 years old when he shot and killed four of his classmates and injured seven people, including a teacher, at Oxford High School in Michigan in November 2021. Crumbley was sentenced to life in prison without parole while his parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, who failed to secure the handgun used in the shooting, were sentenced to 15 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 10 years.
Crooks searched for the location of Trump's Butler rally three days after Trump's campaign announced the event. He also searched for the date and location of the DNC, which is being held in Chicago in late August. Additionally, there were searches for information about Trump and Biden and other top political figures.
"We don't have anything more to provide beyond the statements we've already released," the FBI told Newsweek via email on Friday morning.
Newsweek also reached out to the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) via email for comment.
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Day of the shooting
On the day of the shooting, Crooks searched photos of the location of the Trump rally and for a local gun store where he bought the bullets that he used in the attempted assassination.
Crooks had visited the rally location a week before and on the morning of the rally, he visited it again for over an hour, according to investigators. Law enforcement officials think Crooks then went home and got his father's AR-15 rifle.
Rudimentary explosive devices, a bulletproof vest, magazines that were the same type he used in the shooting, and a drone were found in Crooks' car, law enforcement officials reportedly told lawmakers on Wednesday.
The investigation continues
Crooks' motive in the shooting is still unclear. While the FBI is treating this as an assassination attempt, a U.S. official briefed on the matter said that there is a theory among investigators that the shooter just wanted to carry out a mass shooting and the Trump rally was the best opportunity for it, CNN reported.
The shooter's political affiliations are also still unknown. He was a registered Republican voter, although he donated $15 to the Progressive Turnout Project in early 2021, according to Federal Election Commission records.
President Joe Biden said in an Oval Office address last Sunday night that law enforcement officials are investigating the shooting and told the American people: "Don't make assumptions about [Crooks'] motives or his affiliations."
Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said that the House will conduct a full investigation of the shooting, writing on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday evening: "The American people deserve to know the truth. We will have Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and other appropriate officials from DHS and the FBI appear for a hearing before our committees ASAP."
The Republican-led House Oversight Committee has launched an investigation into the shooting and asked Cheatle to testify on July 22.
Update 7/19/24, 12:14 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from the FBI.
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