A bizarre video featuring the man who tried to assassinate President Donald Trump during a rally in Pennsylvania last summer has resurfaced a year after the shooting. Thomas Matthew Crooks fired shots at Trump, who at the time was the leading Republican candidate for the presidency, on July 13, 2024.
One of the bullets grazed Trump's ear, while another stray bullet killed 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, a father of two and a former fire chief, who was in the crowd. Now, a new video has surfaced that appears to show the would-be assassin talking about cooking holiday dishes with his parents and expressing a desire to get better at public speaking.
Killer's Unlikely Video
Dressed in a neatly buttoned navy polo shirt and wearing glasses, the straight-laced 18-year-old Crooks appears composed and family-focused in the video, with no indication that he would go on to commit murder just two years later.
"Hello, my name is Thomas Crooks. I'm currently 18 years old and live in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania," he said in the newly-unearthed clip.
New Thomas Matthew Crooks video pic.twitter.com/jzE0BzP58m
— The Ogster (@Ognir2) July 14, 2025
"My family consists of me, my mom and dad, my older sister, and our cat, Libby - and I don't think there's any better way to spend time with family than cooking meals together.
"Me and my mom have cooked dinners together since I was a little kid, and on the holidays everybody helps out in the kitchen. For Thanksgiving, me and my dad will cook turkey and mashed potatoes together. At Christmas, me and my mom will bake dozens of cookies together.
"In this course, I hope to improve my skills as a public speaker. I've never been particularly good at public speaking. Until then, good luck to you all."
The video is chilling precisely because of how normal it seems, offering no hint of the violent events that would later unfold in Butler.
Crooks, who was shot dead by Secret Service snipers at the Trump rally, had been a registered Republican and had only completed high school two years prior to the incident.
He was employed as a dietary aide at the Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where he helped serve meals and care for elderly and recovering patients.
No Signs of Mental Issues
His employer said on Sunday that Crooks had passed a background check and had done his job without raising any concerns—before he showed up at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, armed with an AR-15-style rifle.
In a shocking and chaotic moment, Trump was seen clutching his ear and falling to the ground as Crooks' gunfire erupted, throwing the crowd into panic.
Just seconds later, Trump stood up, raised his fist, and yelled "fight, fight, fight" while being rushed away by Secret Service agents to a waiting motorcade and then to a hospital.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Crooks' uncle, Mark Crooks, said he hadn't seen the shooter or his parents in several years, describing the family as "very private." "I haven't seen that part of my family in years,' he said. 'Honestly it's been so long I don't think much about them
"It's a shame. The kid is like a stranger to me. They're private and they don't reach out to anybody any time."
The Bethel Park School District, where Crooks had been a student until two years ago, confirmed his graduation and vowed to fully cooperate with authorities during the investigation.
Records show that on the day of President Joe Biden's inauguration in 2020, Crooks made a donation to a group that supported him.
So far, Crooks' reasons for trying to assassinate Trump remain unclear.
