A photo from viral social media posts shows Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks.
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No, this photo is not of Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks
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- An unnamed man falsely claimed responsibility for the attempted assassination.
- He posted a photo and a video of himself saying he was the shooter at the rally.
- The posts came hours after police and local officials confirmed the real shooting suspect was dead.
Do these images show Thomas Matthew Crooks, the man named by the FBI as the suspect in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump?
Social media posts quickly claimed to reveal the portrait of the suspect who authorities say shot and killed one person, injured former President Donald Trump and critically injured two others at the candidate’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania July 13.
The posts seen on X and Instagram show the side profile of a long-haired blond man wearing a blue shirt and eyeglasses.
The man can be seen in a video claiming responsibility for the attack. "My name is Thomas Matthew Crooks," he said. "I hate Republicans, I hate Trump and guess what, you got the wrong guy."
The person in the video is not Crooks.
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These posts were flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)
U.S. Secret Service agents killed the suspected shooter, according to the agency’s July 13 press statement. Butler County District Attorney Richard A. Goldinger also confirmed the shooting suspect’s death.
The photos and video also surfaced online several hours after officials confirmed the real shooting suspect was dead.
We rate the claim that the viral social media images of a long-haired blonde man wearing a blue shirt and eyeglasses as the shooter at Trump’s rally Pants on Fire.
Our Sources
ABC News, Trump rushed off stage as possible shots heard at rally; shooter dead, DA says, Jul. 13, 2024
The Guardian, FBI names suspect, 20, as ‘subject involved’ in Trump rally shooting, Jul. 14, 2024
X post, Anthony Guglielmi, Jul. 13, 2024
X post, Shayan Sardarizadeh, Jul. 14, 2024
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No, this photo is not of Trump rally shooting suspect Thomas Matthew Crooks
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