Thomas Matthew Crooks emailed Butler County Sheriff’s office prior to Trump assassination attempt: report

Newly released federal records indicate that a deputy with the Butler County Sheriff’s Office exchanged two emails with would-be Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks prior to the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

The records were obtained by Judicial Watch through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the FBI and were released on Friday. According to Judicial Watch, the FBI produced 48 heavily redacted pages related to its investigation into the shooting.

Among the documents was an interview summary involving a Butler County Sheriff’s deputy who told investigators she had exchanged two emails with Crooks before the attack. The contents of the emails remain unknown, as relevant portions were redacted. The deputy also told investigators that she did not have any personal interaction with Crooks.

“[Redacted] advised she [redacted] Thomas Crooks (CROOKS) in the [redacted] was an [redacted] therefore [redacted] with CROOKS. [Redacted] advised she did not recognize CROOKS when everything was on the news over the weekend but on Sunday night, a New York Times reporter emailed her asking questions,” reads the heavily redacted FBI communications titled “Disc of 5 Deputies of the Butler County Sheriff’s Office that were conducted on 07/16/2024.”

“[Redacted] advised she checked her emails and records and only had two email communications from CROOKS and both emails were in regard to [redacted],” it continued. “[Redacted] advised she did not have any personal interaction with CROOKS [redacted].”

The records also revealed that a SWAT officer recovered a “gray remote device” equipped with an antenna from Crooks’ pocket after he was shot and killed. Additional details about the device were not included.

Another interview summary described the account of a medic with the Beaver County Emergency Services Unit who was present on the roof of the building where Crooks’ body remained after the shooting. According to the records, the medic told investigators that a police canine had a “hit” on the building and she was told to evacuate the roof.

The medic said she did not know when Crooks' body was removed from the roof, and that she was “provided a body bag by Butler County EMS and later provided this bag to an individual from FBI or US Secret Service.”