The suspect in the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump has been identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. The FBI has been trying to find any online accounts linked to Crooks that could provide insight into his motivations. It has been revealed that Crooks had a Discord account, a gaming chat platform, although he rarely used it. Discord has stated that they found no evidence of the account being used to plan the incident or discuss political views. The company strongly condemns violence of any kind and is cooperating with law enforcement.
Discord is primarily used for gaming communities and online chatting while playing games. It differs from public social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook as it is a server-based messaging system where users gather in private communities that are not easily searchable or shared outside of the server’s active members. This was also the case with the gunman behind the 2022 mass shooting in Buffalo, where planning took place on a private Discord server.
While Discord has been promoting itself as a mainstream communication tool, it has recently focused on its roots as a platform for gamers. The CEO of Discord believes that the platform can play an important role in the future of gaming by making it easier for people to communicate before, during, and after playing games.
The shooting at Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, PA resulted in the former president being injured in his right ear and the death of both an attendee and the suspected gunman. Two other attendees were injured and are in critical condition at Alleghany General Hospital. It has been reported that Crooks made a donation to a liberal PAC in 2021 but later registered as a Republican. During the shooting, he was wearing a shirt for a gun enthusiast YouTuber channel.
The incident has left many people shocked, including the author of the YouTuber channel’s shirt that Crooks was wearing. News stations have been reaching out to him to inquire if he had any contact with the shooter, leaving him bewildered by the situation.
