BlackRock has reportedly pulled an ad that features the failed would-be Trump assassin, Thomas Matthew Crooks.

Crooks’ appearance was first identified online by politicos like Laura Loomer, who tweeted the video in the early hours of the morning following the shooting.

“EXCLUSIVE:  Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old shooter who tried assassinating President Donald Trump at his campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania last night, was featured in a BlackRock @BlackRock ad in 2023! The ad was filmed at Bethel Park High School,” the former Florida congressional candidate posted.

The 27-second ad features a Bethel Park High School teacher named Brian Delallo. The camera follows Delallo as he travels around the school and instructs students. In one frame, shot inside a classroom, a boy in a black hoodie with glasses and short blond hair can be seen. This young man is believed to be Crooks.

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The ad closes with the words, “[BlackRock has] Invested in the future of Americans.”

Once this video resurfaced, the multinational asset manager was quick to quash the video.

“In 2022, we ran an ad featuring a teacher from Bethel Park High School, in which several unpaid students briefly appeared in the background, including Thomas Matthew Crooks,” a spokesperson for the company said, per CNN. “We will make all video footage available to the appropriate authorities, and we have removed the video from circulation out of respect for the victims.”

While BlackRock has tried to lower the profile of the ad itself, the advertisement’s subjects have also attempted to avoid media coverage. Delallo appears to have had an account on X. If one googles his name, the account is still the first result. However, it appears he recently deactivated the account.

Crooks was a resident of Bethel Park, a town located roughly an hour away from where the rally was held in Butler County, according to Reuters, but little else is known about him at this time.

Although numerous reports have indicated he was a registered Republican, others have noted he made a $15 donation to ActBlue, a Democratic donation platform, on the day of Biden’s inauguration.

A background check run by The Dallas Express shows no credible record of criminal activity.

A former classmate, Jason Kohler, claimed Crooks was “relentlessly” bullied in high school and was known for wearing hunting gear to class, KDKA reported. However, this was contradicted by a statement from now-retired Bethel High School counselor Jim Knapp. Knapp claimed on Facebook that Crooks was “respectful” and “kids weren’t bullying him,” the New York Post reported.

Ultimately, Crooks was killed by the Secret Service moments after taking his shot at the 45th president. Investigators are reportedly meeting with Crooks’ parents and neighbors to understand what led up to the historic incident.

 

Other videos of a high school-age Crooks have surfaced since Loomer tweeted the ad. One video posted to Twitter on July 15 reportedly shows Crooks joking, “I am 6’4, I go to Stanford University, and I have a 10-inch penis.”

While little has been disclosed about Crooks’ proportions, CBS reported that he graduated from the Community College of Allegheny County in May of this year with an associates in science degree in engineering science.

He had recently been admitted to the University of Pittsburgh to continue his studies in the fall, but a university spokesperson said he informed the school in March that he would not be attending. Crooks had reportedly chosen Robert Morris University instead.

He was employed as a dietary aide at Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

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