WHAT WAS CLAIMED
The gunman in the attempted assassination of Donald Trump was not Thomas Matthew Crooks.
OUR VERDICT
False. Crooks has been identified by the FBI as the gunman.
Misinformation surrounding the assassination attempt of Donald Trump has spread widely on social media, with many claims relating to the shooter's identity.
Before the FBI confirmed the person involved was 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, false accusations and confusion began appearing online.
The former US president was wounded in his right ear while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania at the weekend, and one spectator was killed.
Numerous social media users denied the shooter was Crooks.
"It appears the actual ID of the shooter at the rally in PA is Maxwell Yearick," one Facebook post states.
"Now, it's being reported that Thomas Matthew Crooks is NOT the alleged shooter, and that it is a guy affiliated with ANTIFA that was actually arrested back in 2016 for being involved in an Anti-Trump protest in Pittsburgh … His name is Maxwell Yearick," another user claims.
Some posts include a photo of Maxwell Yearick, a man with long brown hair and ear piercings, who was arrested in 2016 following an altercation with police while protesting Trump's visit in Pittsburgh and sentenced to three to 12 months after pleading guilty to assault.
Yearick is not, however, connected to the assassination attempt and his photograph can be traced to news reports from the time of his arrest.
Other users shared pictures and screengrab (PNG) of a video showing a person in a blue T-shirt with long blond hair.
In the video the person says: "My name is Thomas Matthew Crooks. I hate Republicans. I hate Trump. And guess what? You got the wrong guy."
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