Anonymous Donor Paid for Cremation of Trump Shooter Thomas Crooks After Assassination Attempt, FBI Files Show

An unidentified donor paid for the cremation of Thomas Matthew Crooks after his failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump, according to newly surfaced FBI records that reveal fresh details about the 20-year-old gunman's secretive behaviour before the shooting.

Crooks opened fire at Trump's campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on 13 July 2024, wounding the then-former president and killing firefighter Corey Comperatore, who died shielding his family.

Two other spectators, David Dutch and James Copenhaver, were seriously wounded before a Secret Service counter-sniper shot Crooks dead.

Federal documents reviewed by Fox News Digital reveal that a lawyer for Crooks' family later told investigators that his body had been cremated and that an anonymous donor paid the cost. The records do not identify the donor or explain why the person offered to cover the expense.

Crooks Used 'Bob Dole' Alias for Deliveries

The files also shed new light on Crooks' extensive use of aliases and privacy tools before the attack. His father, Matthew Crooks, told investigators that his son routinely ordered packages under the name 'Bob Dole,' the late Republican senator and 1996 presidential nominee, and would retrieve them before his father returned home from work.

Some of Crooks' online purchases involved firearms-related equipment. The FBI previously disclosed that Crooks had made more than 25 firearms-related purchases from online vendors beginning in spring 2023, using aliases, followed by purchases of chemical precursors used in explosive devices recovered after the attack.

According to the new records, Crooks' father said the pseudonym originally emerged after his own bank account was hacked and hit with fraudulent gambling charges.

Crooks reportedly became intensely concerned with online privacy, discussing virtual private networks and secure browsers with his father and arguing that aliases could make online purchases harder to trace.

Father Said Son Had 'No Friends'

The documents paint a similarly isolated picture of Crooks' teenage years. His father told FBI agents that while Crooks interacted with classmates, he 'never identified anyone as a friend throughout middle school and high school', per Fox News.

Investigators found numerous digital accounts associated with Crooks, including foreign-hosted email accounts, but the FBI has said it uncovered no evidence that a foreign actor directed him or that he conspired with anyone who had advance knowledge of the attack.

His political motivations have also remained murky. Although Crooks searched for information about political figures and assassination attempts, including the distance between Lee Harvey Oswald and John F. Kennedy, investigators said their analysis did not establish a definitive motive.

Mystery Still Surrounds Butler Attack

More than two years after the shooting, the new records add detail without answering the central question of why Crooks decided to attack Trump. The FBI has described the shooting as a carefully planned assassination attempt and said Crooks conducted reconnaissance of the rally site before opening fire.

Yet investigators have consistently said they found no confirmed co-conspirator and no clear ideological motive. The anonymous payment for Crooks' cremation adds another unexplained detail to the case, but the records cited in the reporting do not indicate that the donor was connected to the assassination attempt or had advance knowledge of Crooks' plans.

Right now, the documents establish only that someone whose identity has not been disclosed paid the expense, not who that person was, how they knew of the family's situation, or why they chose to become involved.