The manhunt for the shooter who killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk ended Friday with a suspect taken into custody, authorities mentioned.
Utah’s Division of Public Security and the FBI confirmed the arrest throughout a morning briefing, capping a two-day search that started after the 31-year-old podcaster and Turning Level USA cofounder was fatally shot at Utah Valley College on Wednesday.
Authorities recognized the suspect as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson of Washington, Utah, after receiving a tip from a pal of Robinson’s household. Officers mentioned the tip got here late Thursday night time, prompting brokers to maneuver rapidly to find and arrest him. A $100,000 reward for data resulting in the identification and arrest of the shooter was introduced Thursday.
President Donald Trump first introduced the arrest in a stay interview on Fox Information, claiming, “With a excessive diploma of certainty, now we have him.”
At a press briefing Friday, Utah governor Spencer Cox introduced Robinson had been arrested within the early hours of September 12 after a member of the family reached out to a household pal, who contacted authorities. The pal instructed investigators that Robinson had hinted at his involvement within the taking pictures. The tip was relayed by native legislation enforcement to the FBI and Utah county investigators, who matched Robinson’s grey Dodge Challenger and clothes to campus surveillance footage from the day of the taking pictures. A member of the family additionally instructed investigators that Robinson spoke critically of Kirk.
Cox mentioned Robinson’s roommate additionally cooperated, displaying investigators Discord messages through which Robinson mentioned retrieving and hiding a rifle, leaving it wrapped in a towel, monitoring the drop web site, and engraving bullets.
FBI director Kash Patel outlined the bureau’s function within the investigation, stressing the velocity of the response and coordination with Utah authorities. He mentioned brokers arrived on scene inside 16 minutes of the taking pictures, secured the world alongside native police, and rapidly started transferring proof to FBI labs in Quantico for evaluation. “The FBI and our companions are proud to face right here at the moment collectively to convey justice to the household of Charlie Kirk and honor his reminiscence,” he mentioned.
Past the Discord account recognized by Cox, Robinson seems to have had just about no on-line footprint that might be instantly recognized in public or non-public databases. Web customers produced photographs they claimed got here from household picture albums posted on-line, however the accounts of his speedy relations have been shut down rapidly and these photographs could not be verified; none pointed to any apparent motive or ideology.
In a press release, Utah State College confirmed that Robinson briefly attended the college for one semester in 2021.
Investigators recovered a Mauser .30-caliber looking rifle close to the scene of the taking pictures, allegedly deserted by the gunman as he fled right into a wooded space. A spent spherical was discovered within the chamber, with three stay cartridges within the journal. Cox mentioned Friday that the casings bore engraved inscriptions, starting from political slogans to cultural references and crude jokes.
Authorities say the shooter fired from a rooftop overlooking a courtyard the place Kirk was internet hosting a trademark “show me fallacious” campus debate. Extensively shared footage on-line exhibits Kirk addressing a query on mass shootings when a bullet out of the blue strikes him within the neck.
