A shooting at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday left one person killed and two others injured. The suspected shooter, identified by federal authorities as Thomas Matthew Crooks, was killed by U.S. Secret Service gunmen.
Vincent Taormina, who met Crooks in middle school and knew him through high school, described him as a pretty smart kid, sometimes a bit smug.
Taormina says Crooks had his circle of friends and was never really a loner or super quiet.
He did, however, recall a falling out with Crooks in eighth grade, around 2018, two years into Donald Trump’s presidency.
“I said something about Trump and, you know, making up all the pros and cons and how I thought he was doing really well compared to how we thought he was,” said Taormina. “And that’s when Thomas was like, ‘well, aren’t you Hispanic?’ And I was like, ‘yeah.’ And he was like, ‘well, and you like Trump?’ I go, ‘yeah.’ And he goes, ‘well, that’s a little stupid, isn’t it?’
“He was not one for a certain politician, as far as I know. As far as I know, he hated all politicians. He hated, I wouldn’t say the government per se, but he definitely did not like our politicians and our pool of choice when it comes to our politicians.”
Taormina says Crooks was picked on over appearance or being a nerd — comments here and there — but overall, he said in a million years he never thought Crooks would do something like this.
Sources from the school tell Spectrum News 1 Crooks was a polite student who didn’t really have any issues with people.
