Kash Patel speaks at a news conference, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, in Orem, Utah, as Utah department of public safety commissioner Beau Mason, left, and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox listen.
FBI Director Kash Patel looks on during a press conference at Utah Valley University, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, in Orem, Utah, regarding the killing of Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of Turning Point USA. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Law enforcement stands at the top of the Losee Center, where the alleged gunman used to escape from the roof after shooting and killing Turning Point USA CEO and co-founder Charlie Kirk, at Utah Valley University, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
By Jesse Bedayn And John Seewer The Associated Press
OREM, Utah (AP) 鈥 DNA on a towel wrapped around a rifle found near where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated matched that of the 22-year-old accused in the killing, FBI Director Kash Patel said on Monday.
Investigators also have used DNA evidence to link the suspect, Tyler Robinson, with a screwdriver recovered from the rooftop where was fired, Patel told Fox News Channel on Monday.
Authorities in Utah are preparing to file capital murder charges against Robinson as early as Tuesday in the killing of Kirk, a dominant figure in conservative politics who became a after founding Arizona-based Turning Point USA, one of the nation’s .
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Kirk, who brought young, conservative evangelical Christians into politics, was shot Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University during one of his many campus stops. The shooting raised fears about increasing .
Officials have said Robinson carried a hatred for Kirk and ascribed to a 鈥渓eftist ideology鈥 that had grown in recent years. Robinson鈥檚 family and friends said he spent large amounts of time scrolling the “dark corners of the internet,鈥 Sunday.
Patel told Fox News that Robinson had written in a note before the shooting that he had an opportunity to take out Kirk and was going to do it. Investigators were able to recover the note’s contents after it had been destroyed, the FBI director said, paraphrasing from the note without revealing more details.
Authorities said Robinson has not been cooperating with law enforcement. They say that he may have been 鈥渞adicalized鈥 online and that ammunition found in the gun used to kill Kirk included anti-fascist and meme-culture language engravings. Court records show that one bullet casing had the message, 鈥淗ey, fascist! Catch!鈥
Robinson was arrested late Thursday near where he grew up around St. George, in the southwestern corner of Utah between Las Vegas and Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. It’s unclear whether he has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Tributes to Kirk continue across the country. A line of mourners wrapped around the Kennedy Center in Washington for a vigil on Sunday, and there were moments of silence at several professional sporting events.
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Vice President JD Vance, who , planned to serve as a substitute host on Monday for Kirk’s talk show on Rumble, a streaming platform.
鈥淧lease join me as I pay tribute to my friend,鈥 Vance wrote on social media.
