Trump assassin suspect exchanged texts about 3D printer

Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old who attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a 2024 rally, exchanged text messages about 3D printing in the months leading up to the attack, according to records obtained by Judicial Watch through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.

In a conversation on February 9, 2023, with an individual the FBI identified as an 'unknown contact,' Crooks stated, 'Yes, except for the fan blades,' in response to a question about whether he had 3D printed parts. These messages were extracted from a Samsung mobile phone and deemed 'pertinent' to the investigation into the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt, the records show.

Crooks' father, Matthew Crooks, informed investigators that his son owned a 3D printer and had previously attempted to create a handgun. He stated that his son used carbon fiber plastic, a dryer, and a toaster oven to create a Glock 19 but that he did not permit his son to use the firearm due to concerns about the frame exploding after it was test-fired. The father reportedly did not allow his son to use the gun after he fired a single round because of fears that the frame would explode.

In the obtained messages, Crooks mentioned trying to save money to move out, noting that apartments were too expensive. He also appeared to confirm printing 'the parts' before changing the subject to school.

Separate FBI communications from May 22, 2023, detailed a series of messages between Crooks and the unknown contact, consisting of difficult-to-decipher characters and short phrases. The outgoing messages included strings of words like 'Hello reddd Hello red Hello re d Gevegeg Hello Hdhdh Hello Hello Red red Hello red JjjjjJjJ Hhdj Jhhhuuh Hello,' while incoming messages were fully redacted.

Records also indicated that Crooks received a DHL Express shipment from Hong Kong on January 3, 2023. The location of the delivery was not specified.

An FBI laboratory report included in the records revealed that eight flight logs from Crooks' commercial-off-the-shelf drone, equipped with video and audio capabilities, were recovered. According to former FBI Director Christopher Wray, Crooks flew a drone approximately 200 yards from the Trump rally stage for about 11 minutes on the day of the assassination attempt, using the device to livestream and record footage. Prior drone flights occurred in February in areas near Pittsburgh, including Bethel Park, Allegheny-West, and New Eagle.

Additionally, 40 images extracted from Crooks' drone, taken between February 6 and February 27, 2024, in the Pittsburgh area, were part of the obtained documents. The drone's logs and recovered images were provided by Judicial Watch.

Further records from Judicial Watch included text messages from November and December 2022 containing fundraising appeals for Raphael Warnock, the current Georgia Senator who was then a Democratic candidate.

Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, stated that the records provide additional pieces to the puzzle surrounding Crooks and called for the FBI to release the full, unredacted investigative record. This comes after the recent death of James Copenhaver, 76, who was injured during the assassination attempt on Trump. Copenhaver was hit in the arm and abdomen during the attack and died on September 23; it has not been specified if his death was directly related to these injuries. Fire chief Corey Comperatore, 50, was killed at the rally while shielding his family from gunfire.