Utah, Sep 12: Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old from Utah, has been taken into custody in connection with the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, officials confirmed. Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox said the suspect had grown “more political” and opposed Kirk’s beliefs, reportedly admitting responsibility to a family friend.
Authorities cited multiple pieces of evidence linking Robinson to the attack, including engravings on bullets found in a rifle believed to have been used and messages shared on a chatting app, provided to law enforcement by a roommate.
President Donald Trump announced Robinson’s capture during a live interview on Fox News Channel Friday morning, adding that someone “very close to him” had turned him in.
Video footage released Thursday shows a man walking across the roof of the building where the gunfire originated, climbing down, and entering a wooded area where officials later recovered a high-powered bolt-action rifle believed to have been used in the shooting. The suspect’s face was partially concealed with a baseball cap and sunglasses; he was carrying a black backpack and wearing a shirt displaying an American flag. Investigators noted that his college-age appearance allowed him to blend into the campus crowd.
“The suspect left palm impressions and smudges. There’s a shoe imprint identifying Converse tennis shoes,” said Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason, who added that DNA evidence collection was ongoing. The FBI had previously offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Kirk’s shooter.
Kirk, 31, was shot in the neck while speaking at a public event, with the attack captured on video and widely circulated on social media. The activist, a close ally of former President Trump and a prominent figure in conservative youth movements, was targeted in broad daylight.
Bolt-action rifles, unlike semi-automatic firearms often used in mass shootings, require manual loading of each cartridge but are considered highly accurate at longer ranges, officials noted.
President Trump announced he would award Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. “Charlie Kirk was a great person, a great man—great in every way, especially with youth,” Trump said, praising his contributions to political engagement among young Americans.
Vice President J.D. Vance, who credited Kirk with helping Trump secure the 2024 presidential election and select key appointments in his administration, canceled a trip to New York to visit Kirk’s family in Utah and accompany them back to Arizona aboard Air Force Two.
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