A new report claims that would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks made over 25 “firearms-related purchases” over the past year under a fake name before shooting former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, earlier this month.
Law enforcement sources told The New York Post that 20-year-old Crooks made over 25 separate purchases from online gun stores under a fake name since last spring and attempted to hide his purchase activity online. The sources claimed that Crooks put significant effort into hiding his activity online, indicating that he was planning something way before the former president’s campaign rally in Butler.
According to The New York Post, law enforcement sources did not confirm whether the individual purchases from gun supply stores were firearms; however, the outlet noted that federal law requires individuals to complete background and identification checks prior to the purchase of most guns.
Sources also told The New York Post that Crooks purchased six “chemical precursors” during the first half of the year, which he ultimately used to make the explosive devices that law enforcement officials found in his car and his home. The chemical precursor purchases were also made under a fake name.
The New York Post reported that prior to the assassination attempt against Trump, Crooks researched the 1963 assassination of former President John F. Kennedy, including how far away assassin Lee Harvey Oswald was when he shot Kennedy. While the 20-year-old collected weapons and other gear for the July 13 assassination attempt, he also researched multiple U.S. politicians and a United Kingdom royal official.
According to The New York Post, Crooks also researched the assassination attempt against Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, mass shootings, and power plants.
Sources told The New York Post that Crooks was “highly intelligent” and explained that the would-be assassin started shooting as a hobby but eventually shifted after he began taking firearms classes last fall.
Just one day prior to the assassination attempt against Trump, Crooks went to a local shooting range and practiced his marksmanship with his father’s DPMS DR-15 rifle, which The New York Post reported was a variation of the AR-15 that sells for roughly $700. The DPMS DR-15 rifle was the weapon Crooks used to shoot the former president in the ear, kill one rally attendee, and injure two others.
