Attempted Trump assassin Thomas Crooks practiced shooting at his preferred gun range the day before the Department of Homeland Security conducted a training there — just two months before he opened fire at the former president’s rally.
Crooks, 20, visited the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club in Pennsylvania on May 22 around 3:10 p.m., where he practiced alone at the rifle range, according to a club logbook obtained by Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) office.
The very next day, beginning at noon, DHS conducted a “police training” at the range with at least three people, club records show.
Clairton’s rifle range where Crooks would have practiced is 200 yards long — more than enough space for him to practice the 150-yard shot he would take at Trump on July 13, wounding the former president and killing a bystander.
It is unclear whether DHS regularly held trainings there, or if the May 23 visit was an uncommon occurrence.
But Crooks was a frequent visitor to the range, stopping by for practice dozens of times since he joined in August 2023.
Across at least 43 visits, Crooks spent 80% of his time at the club’s rifle range — which Grassley’s office said showed “intense preparation” for his shot at Trump.
“He focused almost exclusively on the rifle range throughout 2024,” the senator’s office said in a statement.
During his membership, Crooks averaged between three and six visits per month, never once brought a guest with him, and visited on Halloween, Christmas and Valentine’s Day.
His final visit was on July 12 at 2:45 p.m. — the day before he unloaded on Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, with an AR-15 rifle. Crooks was shot dead by Secret Service snipers.
No motivation has yet been uncovered for Crooks’ assassination plot.
The club is located about 30 minutes from Crooks’ hometown of Bethel Park, and just over an hour from the rally grounds.
Records from his visits were made available to Grassley’s office after a congressional request.
Clairton Sportsmen’s Club declined to comment on Crooks or DHS’ use of the facility, citing the ongoing investigation into the shooting.
