Thomas Matthew Crooks, who recently made headlines for his attempt to assassinate President Donald Trump, had a troubling history of violent threats dating back to his high school years. In 2019, Crooks alarmed his classmates and the community with threats to “shoot up” Bethel Park High School.
Five years before the assassination attempt, Crooks posted a message on an anonymous school forum warning students not to attend school, suggesting bombs were planted in the cafeteria. This caused widespread fear, and many students, including Vincent Taormina, chose to stay home. Taormina recalled, “Half of us just didn’t come to school the next day — I didn’t. But it wasn’t taken seriously.” School authorities dismissed the threat after identifying Crooks and his friends as the culprits.
This earlier incident is now a critical part of the FBI’s investigation into Crooks’ recent attack on Trump. During a Trump campaign rally, Crooks fired seven shots from a rooftop, targeting the former president. Trump escaped with a minor injury, but the attack resulted in the death of a father of two and seriously injured two other attendees. Investigators found explosive devices in Crooks’ car parked near the rally location.
During his time at Bethel Park High School, Crooks was frequently bullied and ostracized, earning the nickname “the school shooter.” His absence from the 2019 yearbook further underscores his isolation during those years. Despite the alarming threat, school officials at the time did not take substantial action, allowing the incident to fade into the background.
Criminologists are now examining Crooks’ high school threats to understand his motives for the recent assassination attempt. The parallels between the threats made as a teenager and his actions at the Trump rally are striking, suggesting a long-standing pattern of violent ideation.
This case underscores the importance of taking all threats seriously and ensuring thorough investigations. Crooks’ early warnings were a missed opportunity to intervene and possibly prevent future violence. The FBI’s focus on his past actions is an effort to piece together the factors leading to the attempted assassination and to prevent similar incidents in the future.
