Youth who shot Trump from 140m away missed target by 20ft in school

Thomas Matthew Crooks, who allegedly tried to assassinate former US President Donald Trump, had been rejected from his high school rifle team for being a “terrible” shot, it has been revealed.

The 20-year-old, a resident of Bethel Park, was reportedly shot dead by Secret Service agents after he allegedly shot at the Republican presidential candidate at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday (July 13).

Fired from 140 metres away

He fired at the 78-year-old Trump from a rooftop location 140 metres away from an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle that his father had bought, according to US officials. Trump was hit in the right ear, while a 50-year-old man was killed and two others critically injured.

Crooks was reportedly a member of a local shooting club named Clairton Sportsmen’s Club. He had even tried to join his high school rifle team but was rejected, The Washington Post reported.

Missed target by 20 ft

Former fellow student at Bethel Park High School, Jameson Murphy, told the newspaper that Crooks once missed his target by close to 20 feet. “He...was such a comically bad shot he was unable to make the team and left after the first day,” Murphy was quoted as saying.

“Crooks couldn’t shoot at all. He was a terrible shot,” another classmate told The Washington Post.

The former students told the newspaper that even the coach had “concerns” about Crooks. “He made some crass jokes that weren’t appropriate when there are firearms in the school setting,” they said, without detailing what Crooks said.

What we know about Crooks

So far, it has been revealed that Crooks graduated high school in 2022 with a reputation as a bright but “quiet” student. He had joined an entry-level job near his hometown in Pennsylvania, as a dietary aide at a nursing home.

His school counsellor Jim Knapp described him as “respectful” and said he never knew Crooks to be political. Knapp, who retired from his school job in 2022, said Crooks had always been as “quiet as a church mouse” and “respectful” but he kept to himself though he did have a few friends.

Knapp said Crooks was not “a needy type of kid” and hence saw very little of him.