Trump shooter's parents called police hours before assassination attempt
Thomas Matthew Crooks' parents contacted law enforcement Saturday hours before he opened fire on former President Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally, a source told Fox News.
The aspiring assassin's mother and father told local police that Crooks was missing and that they were concerned about his welfare, the source said.
It remained unclear if they knew that he was in possession of an AR-15 rifle that belonged to his father.
Police have not said what actions they took after being contacted.
NEW PHOTO SHOWS TRUMP SHOOTER'S CELLPHONE, TRANSMITTER FOUND NEAR HIS BODY
FILE - Police continue to block roads around the home of Thomas Matthew Crooks as the FBI continues its investigation into the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, on July 14, 2024. (REBECCA DROKE/AFP via Getty Images)
Crooks' parents are cooperating with FBI investigators as the agency tries to specify a motive for the shooting that injured Trump and killed rally attendee Corey Comperatore.
Officials completed a vetting of Crooks' phone and social media accounts, but have yet to publicize the results of that probe.
The shooter's parents, Matthew and Mary Crooks, were both licensed as professional counselors in Pennsylvania, according to state records.
They both received their social work licenses in 2002 and renewed them as recently as last year.
ERIC TRUMP ‘PISSED OFF’ FOR SECRET SERVICE AGENTS IN LINE OF FIRE, DEMANDS ANSWERS
Thomas Matthew Crooks driver's license photo (AFP Photo/Handout)
Crooks, a 2022 Bethel Park High School graduate, was shot dead by Secret Service snipers after opening fire at the rally in Butler.
The high school loner was a registered Republican but donated to a progressive campaign in 2021.
Along with his father, a registered Libertarian, Crooks was a member of a local gun club.
His mother was a registered Democrat.
NEIGHBOR SAYS TRUMP SHOOTER'S FAMILY HAD NO POLITICAL SIGNS IN YARD AS PARENTS' AFFILIATIONS SURFACE
FILE - US Republican candidate Donald Trump is seen with blood on his face surrounded by secret service agents as he is taken off the stage at a campaign event at Butler Farm Show Inc. in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (REBECCA DROKE/AFP via Getty Images)
The would-be assassin earned an associate degree in engineering science from Allegheny County Community College just two months before the shooting.
ABC News reported that he had planned to attend Robert Morris University in the fall, and had also been accepted to the University of Pittsburgh but opted not to attend.
Secret Service to be under investigation for handling of Trump attack
The Secret Service is facing heightened scrutiny in the wake of the assassination attempt against former President Trump, in which the shooter was allowed to bring a rifle onto a nearby rooftop in broad daylight. The FBI is investigating the Trump shooting as well as the home of Thomas Matthew Crooks.
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Crooks served as a dietary aide at a local nursing home and had asked to have Saturday off because he had "something to do," according to CNN.