The Curious Case of Thomas Crooks’ ‘Bob Dole’ Alias

When the FBI finally pieced together Thomas Crooks’ digital trail, the picture that emerged was oddly nostalgic – a teenager ordering supplies online under the moniker “Bob Dole.” The name, of course, belongs to the former Kansas senator who ran for president in 1996, but for Crooks it was a way to keep his purchases off the radar.

According to records obtained by the New York Post, the 20‑year‑old bought everything from extra‑capacity rifle components to tiny tools, and had the parcels shipped straight to his parents’ house in Pennsylvania. His father, Matthew Crooks, told FBI agents that the packages arrived at their front door in the weeks leading up to the July 13, 2024 Butler Farm Show Grounds rally where his son fired a shot into former President Donald Trump’s ear.

Why choose a political alias? The federal interviewers were baffled, too. Crooks’ own explanation, as recalled by his dad, was that the “Bob Dove” name would shield him from hackers after a family bank account was compromised. He allegedly taught his father how to use a VPN – CyberGhost – and the privacy‑focused Brave browser, insisting these tools were “less likely to be compromised.”

Even with a VPN, though, the money still flows through a real bank account. Matthew Crooks pointed out that buying under a false name doesn’t erase the financial trail, but his son apparently shrugged it off and kept the ruse going.

FBI Director Kash Patel and other officials later confirmed that Crooks maintained at least 35 digital accounts, ranging from U.S. email services to foreign providers in Germany and Belgium. Despite the worldwide spread, investigators found no foreign involvement in the assassination attempt.

Beyond the “Bob Dole” cover, Crooks’ online personas were equally eclectic. One fan‑art site listed him as “epicmicrowave,” while a separate source described him as a “big history buff” who often chatted about “Trump and Biden” back when the former first took office.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R‑IA) secured the FBI files as part of a broader probe into the Butler shooting. The documents, now public, raise more questions than answers about a quiet gunman who seemed to have no clear political agenda, according to his own father.

Patel is slated to testify before the committee next Tuesday, promising to shed further light on how a teenager’s obsession with anonymity intersected with a violent plot against a former president.