Attempted Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks sent mysterious text messages about a 3D printer before shooting
Newly disclosed FBI records show Thomas Matthew Crooks exchanged messages about 3D-printed parts in 2023, more than a year before he shot at Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The messages were marked as relevant to the investigation, but the records provided do not explain how the parts were used or establish a motive.
In a February 2023 exchange, Crooks replied that he had printed parts except for fan blades and said he was saving to move out; his father told investigators Crooks owned a 3D printer and had once made a Glock 19 frame, but was not allowed to use it after firing one round. The records also describe hard-to-decipher messages, a January 2023 shipment from Hong Kong, and eight drone flight logs and 40 images; the FBI said Crooks flew a drone near the rally stage for about 11 minutes on the day of the shooting.
- FBI records include Crooks’s 2023 messages about 3D-printed parts.
- His father said Crooks had once made a handgun frame.
- Records also detail drone flights near the rally.
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Donald Trump is a US political figure who was president from 2017 to 2021 and later ran for office again. On 13 July 2024, a gunman fired at Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania; Trump was injured, and a member of the audience was killed.
The FBI identified the gunman as Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Pennsylvania, and investigated his background and preparations. A 3D printer makes objects from digital designs, including plastic parts, while a drone is a small aircraft operated remotely. References to either device can be relevant to an inquiry, but do not by themselves show what someone intended.
The investigation matters because it examines how the attack was planned and whether warning signs were missed. Crooks was killed at the scene, so investigators could not question him directly; records and other evidence are used to establish what happened, while the reason for the attack remains unclear.