Print
Close
Attempted Trump assassin Thomas Crooks used 'Bob Dole' alias before anonymous donor paid for cremation: docs
By Michael Ruiz, Kelley Kramer
Published September 15, 2026
Thomas Matthew Crooks, the Pennsylvania man who killed a bystander and seriously wounded two others in a failed assassination attempt on President Donald Trump, had no friends as a teenager and used the alias "Bob Dole" while ordering suspicious packages before an anonymous donor paid for his body to be cremated, according to federal documents viewed by Fox News Digital.
The records turned over to the Senate show Thomas’ actions were a surprise to his family, and his motive is still a mystery.
Crooks, 20, typically collected packages addressed to the Dole alias before his father, who worked late, came home.
He was shot and killed after opening fire at a Trump rally in July 2024. A family attorney told investigators that he had been cremated shortly thereafter — paid for by an anonymous donor, according to the documents.
The family of Thomas Crooks leaves the house in Bethel Park, Penn., on Thursday, August 1, 2024. Crooks died while attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump in Butler on July 13. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
LISTEN TO THE NEW 'CRIME & JUSTICE WITH DONNA ROTUNNO' PODCAST
Thomas Matthew Crooks was a 20-year-old from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump during a 2024 campaign rally before being shot and killed by Secret Service agents. (Associated Press | Fox News Digital)
After the shooting, his father, Matthew Crooks, took an early retirement, and his mother, Mary Crooks, went on leave from work to process the situation.
SECRET SERVICE MISSED 'MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES' TO PREVENT TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT: WATCHDOG
The documents, compiled as part of the investigation into the 2024 shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, also include interviews with his father, who told FBI agents the gunman "never identified anyone as a friend throughout middle school and high school."
When agents interviewed Crooks' parents the day after the shooting, his father told investigators that although his son socialized with classmates, the gunman told him they were not his friends.
In the months before the shooting, Crooks's father observed him talking to himself. His father, who worked in the mental health field, said he did not see other signs of a potential mental illness.
Crooks adopted the Dole pseudonym after his father's checking account had been hacked and fraudulent gambling charges appeared, Matthew Crooks told investigators.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
This is a breaking news story. Stick with Fox News Digital for updates.
Fox News' Jon Street contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/attempted-trump-assassin-thomas-crooks-used-bob-dole-alias-anonymous-donor-paid-cremation-docs