A 22-year-old trade school student accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk is being held on suspicion of aggravated murder as prosecutors prepare to file formal charges early next week, Utah Governor Spencer Cox confirmed Friday.
Tyler Robinson, a third-year electrical apprenticeship student at Dixie Technical College, was arrested Thursday night at his parents’ home near St. George following a 33-hour manhunt.
Authorities say relatives and a family friend alerted police after Robinson confessed or implied to them that he had carried out the killing.
Kirk, co-founder of the student group Turning Point USA and a staunch ally of President Donald Trump, was shot dead Wednesday evening by a single rifle round while speaking at an outdoor rally attended by 3,000 people at Utah Valley University in Orem, about 40 miles south of Salt Lake City. Video of the chaotic aftermath quickly circulated online as the gunman fled. A bolt-action rifle believed to be the murder weapon was recovered nearby.
“This was a heinous assassination,” Trump said in response to the killing, which has drawn bipartisan condemnation of political violence. Cox called the shooting “a watershed in American history,” likening it to the wave of political assassinations in the 1960s. He thanked Robinson’s relatives for cooperating with investigators.
Evidence linking Robinson to the crime includes security camera footage, forensic material gathered from his apartment, and digital activity from his Discord account. Ammunition casings found at the scene carried messages, including one reading: “Here fascist! CATCH!” Cox declined to speculate further on motive.
The killing has sparked fierce debate across the political spectrum. Republicans have blamed liberal rhetoric for fueling hostility toward conservatives, while Democrats have condemned political violence broadly and pointed to Trump’s own inflammatory language.
Analysts say Robinson’s beliefs may not fit neatly into one ideological category, reflecting a broader trend in U.S. political violence.
Kirk’s death comes amid a spate of attacks on political figures in recent years. Trump has survived two assassination attempts, while Democrats including Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Minnesota lawmakers Melissa Hortman and John Hoffman have also been targeted.
In an emotional message Friday evening, Erika Kirk vowed to continue her late husband’s mission. “The movement built by my husband will not die,” she said. “He now and for all eternity will stand at his savior’s side wearing the glorious crown of a martyr.”
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
