{"id":2510565,"date":"2025-11-14T09:35:01","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T14:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fbi-denies-saying-thomas-crooks-had-no-online-footprint\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T09:37:25","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T14:37:25","slug":"fbi-denies-saying-thomas-crooks-had-no-online-footprint","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fbi-denies-saying-thomas-crooks-had-no-online-footprint\/","title":{"rendered":"FBI denies saying Thomas Crooks had no online footprint"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffbi-denies-saying-thomas-crooks-had-no-online-footprint%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2510565&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The FBI has denied claims that it said Thomas crooks, the 20-year-old who attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a July 2024 campaign rally, had no online footprint. Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson accused the FBI of lying about Crooks&#8217; lack of a digital presence and teased revealing the shooter&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-this-average-american-is-voting-for-donald-trump\/\" title=\"Why This Average American Is Voting for Donald ...\">social media posts<\/a>. However, the FBI&#8217;s Rapid Response team stated that the bureau never claimed Crooks had no online footprint. <\/p>\n<p>Earlier statements from FBI officials indicated that while there was a suspected social media account linked to Crooks containing extremist content, investigators had yet to fully verify its connection, and there was a lack of detailed information about his motives and mindset from social media or other sources. <\/p>\n<p>Dan Bongino, the former Secret Service agent and then-FBI deputy director, expressed skepticism about the narrative that a 20-year-old in the digital age could have no online presence, suggesting information about the case might be withheld due to political narratives.<\/p>\n<p>Crooks was killed by a Secret service counter-sniper shortly after firing at Trump during the rally, which resulted in one death and two injuries. Carlson has been critical of FBI leadership under Director Kash Patel and Bongino, especially regarding the handling of related political investigations.<\/p>\n<p>The FBI launched its Rapid Response account to combat misinformation and promote transparency, countering what it described as frequent falsehoods and attacks on the bureau&#8217;s work and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/taiwan-deserves-better-than-a-joe-biden-presidency\/\" title=\"Taiwan Deserves Better Than A Joe Biden Presidency\">national security efforts<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">FBI denies saying Thomas Crooks had no online footprint. Here&rsquo;s what it really said<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2400653\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fbi\/\">FBI<\/a> on Thursday denied saying Thomas Crooks, the 20-year-old man who attempted to assassinate President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> at a campaign rally in July 2024, had no online footprint.<\/p>\n<p>Conservative pundit Tucker Carlson <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TuckerCarlson\/status\/1989072646118756755\">alleged that the FBI<\/a> &ldquo;lied&rdquo; about the deceased shooter&rsquo;s seemingly nonexistent digital footprint and asked why that would be the case, teasing he would answer the question in a story on Friday with Crooks&rsquo;s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/social-media\/\">social media<\/a> posts in his possession.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3886782\/doj-fbi-agent-questions-clinton-campaign\/\">Ex-DOJ officials shut down FBI agent&#8217;s questions about Clinton campaign allegations, emails show<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3886737\/america-first-legal-byron-donalds-census-bureau-lawsuit\/\">America First Legal adds Byron Donalds as plaintiff in US Census Bureau lawsuit&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3886241\/doj-searching-suspect-attacked-alina-habba-office-pam-bondi\/\">DOJ searching for suspect who attacked Alina Habba&#8217;s office, Bondi says<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The FBI quickly disputed Carlson&rsquo;s statement.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This FBI has never said Thomas Crooks had no online footprint. Ever,&rdquo; FBI Rapid Response said Thursday.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This FBI has never said Thomas Crooks had no online footprint. Ever. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/nJ6S4CWIp0\">https:\/\/t.co\/nJ6S4CWIp0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; FBI Rapid Response (@FBI_Response) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FBI_Response\/status\/1989085025686679687?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 13, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The conflict between the FBI and Carlson raises the question of whether the bureau ever said Crooks had no presence on social media. Past FBI statements suggest that isn&rsquo;t the case.<\/p>\n<p>Last year, then-FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/live\/rYuz4jRZ0Hs?t=2240s\">told the Senate<\/a> there was a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >social media account &#038;ldquo<\/a>;believed to be associated with the shooter&rdquo; active from 2019 to 2020 that investigators were looking into. In his congressional testimony, Abbate said the account contained antisemitic and anti-immigration &ldquo;themes&rdquo; and promoted political violence.<\/p>\n<p>However, the Biden-era official noted that the FBI still needed to verify Crooks&rsquo;s connection to the account at the time. Apart from the suspected account, Abbate disclosed there was a &ldquo;general absence of other information to date from social media and other sources of information that reflect on the shooter&rsquo;s potential motive and mindset.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In the year since, very little information about the attempted assassin and his motive has been publicized. Authorities have found no manifesto belonging to the shooter.<\/p>\n<p>Before becoming the next FBI deputy director, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/dan-bongino\/\">Dan Bongino<\/a> questioned the peculiarity of Crooks&rsquo;s case last year and cast doubt on the Biden administration&rsquo;s official narrative.<\/p>\n<p>When asked by Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/chip-roy\/\">Chip Roy<\/a> (R-TX) about Crooks&rsquo;s &ldquo;missing&rdquo; online presence, Bongino <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/chiproytx\/status\/1828168531357376522\">said the chance<\/a> of a 20-year-old having no digital footprint &ldquo;defies logic&rdquo; based on his experience in the Secret Service.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never seen anything like it. If you would have told me it was a 60-year-old guy who lived most of his life without a computer and for the last 10 years had been planning this, hard to believe but digestible,&rdquo; he responded. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re telling me a 20-year-old kid who&rsquo;s grown up in the digital era figured this out when he was, what, 13 to never get an online presence? We&rsquo;ve seen nothing. Nothing.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Bongino went on to note the improbability of no Facebook photo of Crooks emerging. At the time, he suggested information was being withheld about the shooting incident because &ldquo;there&rsquo;s a political narrative to be had by the media and the other side.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after grazing Trump&rsquo;s right ear with a bullet, Crooks was shot and killed by a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/secret-service\/\">Secret Service<\/a> counter-sniper, who discovered his position on the rooftop of a nearby building roughly 400 feet away. The incident disrupted Trump&rsquo;s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, before the Republican nominee won the presidency months later. One rally-goer was killed and two others were injured by Crooks&rsquo;s barrage of gunshots.<\/p>\n<p>Carlson has been <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mediaite.com\/media\/news\/it-kind-of-wrecks-dans-career-tucker-carlson-holds-funeral-for-bonginos-credibility-after-epstein-blow-up\/\">particularly critical<\/a> of FBI leadership under FBI Director <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kash-patel\/\">Kash Patel<\/a> and Bongino, especially over the Trump administration&rsquo;s handling of the Epstein files.<\/p>\n<p>The FBI created its Rapid Response account, much like the one run by the White House, on Thursday after Bongino sparred with Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/thomas-massie\/\">Thomas Massie<\/a> (R-KY) online over the bureau&rsquo;s investigation of the Washington, D.C., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-fbi-knows-what-car-was-used-in-j6-dnc-pipe-bomb-but-refuses-to-identify-prime-suspect\/\" title=\"... withholds prime suspect&#039;s identity in J6 DNC pipe bomb case, but knows the car used.\">pipe bomb case<\/a> that remains unsolved nearly five years later.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3885683\/bongino-slams-massie-for-disgusting-implication-that-fbi-is-targeting-investigators-in-jan-6-pipe-bomb-case\/\">BONGINO SLAMS MASSIE FOR &lsquo;DISGUSTING&rsquo; IMPLICATION THAT FBI IS TARGETING INVESTIGATORS IN JAN. 6 PIPE BOMB CASE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>With the new account, the FBI said it&rsquo;s attempting to combat &ldquo;fake news&rdquo; in a bid for more transparency.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Our team continues to face an avalanche of lies, smears, and falsehoods from the fake news and others seeking to undermine our work and national security,&rdquo; the FBI Rapid Response team <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/fbi_response\/status\/1989060433026904528?s=46&amp;t=aOOy8YEKiQSfdQpJkUhBhQ\">said in its first post<\/a>. &ldquo;No FBI has had the temerity to put truth as we have, they bent the knee to lies and DC swamp. We changed that on day 1, and now will go even further and more direct. The days of bad-faith attacks and fake-news narratives are over.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FBI denies claim Crooks had no online footprint<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2159,"featured_media":2510566,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/AP25316680444878_74c6c1.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[50645,3976,50738,67089,55983],"class_list":["post-2510565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-fbi-2","tag-investigation","tag-misinformation-2","tag-online-footprint","tag-thomas-crooks"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/AP25316680444878_74c6c1.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2510565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2159"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2510565"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2510565\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2510569,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2510565\/revisions\/2510569"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2510566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2510565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2510565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2510565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}