OREM, Utah (AP) 鈥 The man accused in the Charlie Kirk assassination had earlier expressed to family his opposition to the viewpoints of the conservative activist, the authorities said Friday in announcing an arrest in a targeted killing that raised fresh alarms about political violence in the United States.
Tyler Robinson, 22, had become 鈥渕ore political鈥 in the run-up to the shooting and had indicated to a family friend afterward that he was responsible, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said. Cox also cited as key pieces of evidence engravings on bullets found in a rifle believed used in the attack as well as chatting app messages attributed to the shooting suspect that a roommate shared with law enforcement.
Cox, a Republican, called Kirk’s killing an 鈥渁ttack on the American experiment,鈥 and he urged a new generation to 鈥渃hoose a different path.鈥
Robinson is believed to have acted alone, and the investigation is ongoing, Cox said.
Robinson’s arrest early Friday morning was disclosed by President Donald Trump, who said in a Fox News Channel interview that, 鈥淲ith a high degree of certainty, we have him.鈥
Calls to telephone numbers listed for Robinson in public records rang unanswered.
News of the arrest came hours after the FBI and state officials had pleaded for public help by releasing additional photographs of the suspect, a move that seemed to indicate that law enforcement was uncertain of the person’s whereabouts.
Kirk was killed by a single shot in what police said was a targeted attack and Utah鈥檚 governor called a political assassination. Kirk co-founded the nonprofit political organization , based in Arizona.
Authorities recovered a high-powered, bolt-action rifle near the scene of the shooting and had said the shooter jumped off a roof and vanished into the nearby woods afterward.
Kirk had been speaking at a debate hosted by Turning Point at Utah Valley University at the time of Wednesday’s shooting. He was taken to a local hospital and was pronounced dead hours later.
鈥淗e wanted to help young people, and he didn鈥檛 deserve this,鈥 Trump said Friday. 鈥淗e was really a good person.鈥
Federal investigators and state officials on Thursday had of the person they believe is responsible. Kirk gathered in a courtyard at the university in Orem.
More than 7,000 leads and tips had poured in, officials said. Authorities have yet to cite a motive in the killing, to convulse the United States.
Grisly video shared online
The attack, carried out in broad daylight as Kirk spoke about social issues, was captured on .
The videos show Kirk, who was influential in rallying young Republican voters, when suddenly a shot rings out. Kirk reaches up with his right hand as blood gushes from the left side of his neck. Stunned spectators gasp and scream before people start running away.
The shooter, who investigators believe blended into the campus crowd because of a college-age appearance, fired one shot from the rooftop, according to authorities. Video released Thursday showed the person then walking through the grass and across the street before disappearing.
鈥淚 can tell you this was a targeted event,鈥 said Robert Bohls, the top FBI agent in Salt Lake City.
Trump, who was joined by Democrats in condemning , said he would award Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S. Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha, in Salt Lake City. Vance posted a remembrance on X chronicling their friendship, dating back to initial messages in 2017, through Vance鈥檚 Senate run and the 2024 election.
鈥淪o much of the success we鈥檝e had in this administration traces directly to Charlie鈥檚 ability to organize and convene,鈥 Vance wrote. 鈥淗e didn鈥檛 just help us win in 2024, he helped us staff the entire government.鈥
Kirk鈥檚 casket was flown aboard Air Force Two from Utah to Phoenix, where his nonprofit political youth organization is based. Trump told reporters he plans to attend Kirk’s funeral. Details have not been announced.
Kirk was taking questions about gun violence
who became a powerful political force among young Republicans and was a fixture on college campuses, where he invited sometimes-vehement debate on social issues.
One such provocative exchange played out immediately before the shooting as Kirk was taking questions from an audience member about .
The debate hosted by Turning Point at the Sorensen Center on campus was billed as the first stop on Kirk’s 鈥淎merican Comeback Tour.鈥
The event generated a polarizing campus reaction. An online petition calling for university administrators to bar Kirk from appearing received nearly 1,000 signatures. The university issued a statement last week citing First Amendment rights and affirming its 鈥渃ommitment to free speech, intellectual inquiry and constructive dialogue.鈥
Last week, Kirk posted on X images of news clips showing his visit was sparking controversy. He wrote, 鈥淲hat鈥檚 going on in Utah?鈥
Attendees barricaded themselves in classrooms
Some attendees who bolted after the gunshot rushed into two classrooms full of students. They used tables to barricade the door and to shield themselves in the corners. Someone grabbed an electric pencil sharpener and wrapped the cord tightly around the door handle, then tied the sharpener to a chair leg.
On campus Thursday, the canopy stamped with the slogan Kirk commonly used at his events 鈥 鈥淧ROVE ME WRONG鈥 鈥 stood, disheveled.
Meanwhile, the shooting continued to draw as Democratic officials joined Trump and other Republican allies of Kirk in decrying the attack, which unfolded during a spike of political violence that has touched a range of ideologies and representatives of both major political parties.
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Tucker and Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Nicholas Riccardi in Denver; Michael Biesecker, Brian Slodysko, Lindsay Whitehurst and Michelle L. Price in Washington; Ty O’Neil in Orem, Utah; Hallie Golden in Seattle; and Meg Kinnard in Chapin, S.C., contributed to this report.
