A new video has emerged that shows the gunman who attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump on Saturday being relentlessly bullied by his peers during high school. The undated footage features Thomas Matthew Crooks seated at his desk while a classmate repeatedly tugs at the leg of his pants.
As the prankster continues to pull on his pants leg, Crooks repeatedly tells them to "stop," eventually saying, "Stop, you're pulling my leg," while the person filming laughs. The footage comes amid revelations from former classmates who said people used to refer to him as a "school shooter," and a counselor said that Crooks often tried to keep to himself.
A Loner Who was Always Bullied
The video shared by TMZ shows Crooks being continuously harassed by his classmates. Just a few years before gaining infamy as a political assassin, Crooks was a "loner" with few friends at Bethel Park High School.
One classmate of Crooks told The New York Post that he "didn't seem like really weird or anything."
"I would have pegged him as a Republican," they said, adding, "He was more of a loner. He probably had a friend group, but not many friends."
Former classmate Julianna Grooms, 19, told the New York Times: "Kids would always say, 'Hey, look at the school shooter over there!'
"They would tease him about his poor hygiene, his body odor. He was an easy target."
Federal campaign finance records have revealed that the gunman was a registered Republican who had previously donated $15 to the liberal ActBlue political action committee on January 20, 2021, the day of Biden's inauguration.
According to Pennsylvania's public court records, Crooks had no criminal history, and officials said they are still working to identify a motive for the shooting.
Motive Still Unclear
Crooks appeared to have graduated in 2022 from Bethel Park High School and received a $500 "star award" that year from the National Math and Science Initiative, according to a report from The Tribune-Review in western Pennsylvania.
In an online recording of the 2022 graduation ceremony, he is seen crossing the stage as the crowd applauds, briefly posing with a school official, and accepting his diploma.
His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late Saturday night that he was trying to figure out "what the hell is going on" but would "wait until I talk to law enforcement" before commenting further about his son.
On Saturday, Crooks fired from a rooftop 150 yards away from where Trump was addressing thousands of supporters in Butler at 6:15 p.m. Footage of the incident shows Trump suddenly grabbing his ear as blood streamed down his face after at least eight shots were fired in his direction.
The crowd began screaming and fleeing the venue as Secret Service agents surrounded the injured former president.
In a show of strength, Trump emerged from the cover of the suited agents, raised his fist, and shouted, "Fight, fight, fight," before being ushered away from the chaotic scene and taken to the hospital.
Crooks had killed a member of the crowd and critically injured two others before being shot down by the Secret Service.
The shooter was killed after firing from an "elevated position" outside the outdoor rally venue, according to the Secret Service.
