CHARLOTTE, N.C. — We are looking into several claims surrounding the attempted assassination during former President Trump's rally Saturday in Pennsylvania.
We went to several different sources to look at these claims.
OUR SOURCES:
The Federal Election Commission
The Pennsylvania Voter Registration Records
The U.S. Secret Service
Politico
THE CLAIM:
Claims are debating his political affiliation and the parties he donated to.
WHAT WE FOUND:
A financial report for Act Blue a Democratic group shows the shooter Thomas Crooks donated 15 dollars on January 20th, 2021, the same day President Joe Biden was sworn into office.
However, Pennsylvania voting records show crooks later registered as a Republican. On a good note, this November would have been the first presidential election he was eligible to vote in since he’s only 20.
The records for both the political donation and voting records have the same address further verifying this is the same Thomas Crooks.
THE CLAIM:
A video and pictures that claim to the shooter, Thomas Crooks.
These posts on Instagram and x claim to be the shooter. Those show the man wearing a blue shirt and glasses.
WHAT WE FOUND:
There are similar features of the shooter and this unknown man. We can verify that this is not Thomas Crooks.
The US Secret Service issued this statement in which they stated they killed the suspect -
Authorities say Crooks was not carrying identification, so they used DNA and other methods to confirm his identity.
THE CLAIM:
Former President Trump went golfing at Bedminster Golf Course the day after he was shot.
WHAT WE FOUND:
This was posted by Republican Senator Mike Lee who said gets shot gets up the next day goes golfing.
This video was taken from TikTok but the user who posted the video is private.
After the video was shared millions of times, Lee corrected his post and said in his comments okay I’m told this video was uploaded today but not taken today. My bad!
Looking at the timeline:
Saturday the former President was treated at a local hospital in Pennsylvania for his gunshot wounds. He arrived in Milwaukee Sunday night for the Republican National Convention.
In an email to Bedminster golf members obtained by Politico, the golf course was closed on Sunday.
This video needs context, it is a video of Former President Trump golfing, but it was not taken on Sunday.
VERIFY is dedicated to helping the public distinguish between true and false information. The VERIFY team, with help from questions submitted by the audience, tracks the spread of stories or claims that need clarification or correction. Have something you want VERIFIED? Text us at 704-329-3600 or visit VERIFY.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
WCNC Charlotte's Verify series is all about trying to make a difference in the Carolinas by making sure the community has the correct information. WCNC Charlotte outlines concisely what we know and what we don't know. Sometimes the answer can be surprising. Watch previous stories where we verify social media claims in the YouTube playlist below and subscribe to get updated when new videos are uploaded.