Charlie Kirk shooting suspect identified as Tyler Robinson, 22: All we know

The antheral suspected of fatally shooting American blimpish activistic Charlie Kirk is yet in custody pursuing a two-day federal manhunt, authorities person confirmed.

Utah Governor Spencer Cox named Tyler Robinson, 22, arsenic the suspected shooter astatine a quality league connected Friday, aft United States President Donald Trump himself announced that a fishy had been arrested. “We got him,” Cox said.

He added that a household subordinate of Robinson’s had reached retired to a person who contacted the authorities, and that friends and household members of Robinson, who had been interviewed by investigators, had described him arsenic “full of hate” erstwhile discussing Charlie Kirk astatine a caller societal gathering.

Robinson is understood to beryllium a section resident, not a pupil astatine the university.

This photograph released by the Utah Governor’s Office connected Friday, September 12, 2025 shows Tyler Robinson, the fishy arrested for fatally shooting Charlie Kirk [Utah Governor’s Office via AP]

Here is what we cognize truthful far:

What did Trump accidental astir Kirk’s shooter?

Before the announcement from Governor Cox and the FBI connected Friday greeting section time, Trump told the Fox News programme, Fox & Friends, that Kirk’s shooter was yet successful custody.

“I deliberation with a precocious grade of certainty, we person him,” Trump told the programme, adding that idiosyncratic “very adjacent to him turned him in”.

He besides said the shooter had been apprehended “five minutes earlier I walked in” to the TV interview.

Trump said helium hoped Kirk’s shooter would person the decease punishment and praised Kirk, expressing sadness implicit his death.

He described Kirk arsenic the “finest person” who “didn’t merit this”.

Trump besides called Kirk “brilliant” and said that helium was “like a son” who helped him with TikTok.

“I’ve ne'er seen young radical spell to 1 idiosyncratic similar they did to Charlie,” Trump said.

Who was Charlie Kirk and what happened to him?

A blimpish media property and staunch Trump ally, Kirk, 31, helped to revitalise the Republican younker ballot and instrumentality US President Donald Trump to the White House successful past year’s statesmanlike election.

He was fatally changeable successful the cervix successful beforehand of a assemblage of 3,000 radical connected Wednesday arsenic helium spoke astatine an event astatine Utah Valley University. He was taken to infirmary but died soon afterwards.

Kirk’s shooting led to tributes pouring successful from Trump, erstwhile US presidents and satellite leaders.

How was Robinson caught?

Governor Cox told a quality league connected Friday: “On the evening of September 11, a household subordinate of Tyler Robinson contacted a household friend, who past informed the Washington County Sheriff’s Office that Robinson had either confessed to oregon implied that helium had committed the incident.

“This accusation was relayed to the Utah County Sheriff’s Office and investigators astatine Utah Valley University and conveyed to the FBI.”

He explained that investigators had reviewed further video footage from the surveillance footage already released and identified Robinson arriving connected field successful a Dodge Challenger connected the greeting of September 10. Family members interviewed by investigators confirmed that Robinson drove specified a vehicle.

He besides added: “Investigators interviewed a household subordinate of Robinson who stated that Robinson had go much governmental successful caller years.”

The quality of Robinson’s apprehension came aft a national manhunt during which investigators interviewed much than 200 radical and received astir 11,000 tips from the public.

Police and national investigators besides asked the nationalist to assistance place the suspect, releasing photographs and video footage showing a “person of interest”.

Utah’s Department of Public Safety released respective photographs of a achromatic antheral wearing Converse trainers, jeans, a long-sleeved achromatic T-shirt with a US emblem and eagle connected it, and a achromatic shot headdress with a triangle.

People ticker a hearse containing the assemblage of Charlie Kirk, who was changeable and killed connected Wednesday, permission aft his assemblage arrived connected committee Air Force Two astatine Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, connected Thursday, September 11, 2025, successful Phoenix, Arizona, United States [Ross D Franklin/AP]

What grounds has been gathered?

Surveillance footage released astatine a quality league connected Thursday showed the antheral fleeing crossed a assemblage rooftop astir 120 metres (400ft) from wherever Kirk was speaking, earlier dropping down to the crushed and moving on the borderline of the field car park, crossed the roadworthy and into adjacent woods, leaving down thenar and footwear prints which were being analysed.

Investigators said they had recovered a bolt-action firearm wrapped successful a dark-coloured towel successful the adjacent woodland, which they judge was utilized successful the shooting.

FBI peculiar cause Robert Bohls described the limb arsenic “a high-powered, bolt-action rifle”. According to US media outlets citing sources, it is an imported Mauser .30-06 bolt-action rifle.

Unlike semiautomatic guns, bolt-action rifles person a slower complaint of occurrence but are valued for their precision. Bohls said the limb is presently undergoing investigation astatine an FBI laboratory for imaginable evidence.

Governor Cox said cryptic messages were engraved connected ammunition casings recovered with the rifle, which helium work retired phonetically. Their meaning is not instantly clear.

One spent ammunition lawsuit read: “Notices, bulges OWO what’s this?”

Cox said 3 unfired ammunition cases read: “Hey fascist! Catch! Up arrow symbol, close arrow symbol, and 3 down arrow symbols”, “Oh Bella Ciao, Bella Ciao, Ciao, Ciao, Ciao” and “If you work this, you are gay, LMAO”.

Cox said investigators had identified Robinson’s roommate who, helium said, had shared respective messages from Robinson connected Discord. These described needing to prime up a firearm that had a scope mounted connected it from a “drop point” and that it had been wrapped successful a towel and near successful a bush. The messages besides discussed engraving ammunition casings.

What happens next?

Cox has pledged to prosecute the decease punishment erstwhile the suspected attacker is tried. Trump has echoed this successful his ain comments.

However, helium added that Kirk’s sidesplitting represents a “watershed successful American history”.

“The question is: What benignant of watershed? And that section remains to beryllium written. Is this the extremity of a acheronian section successful our history, oregon the opening of a darker section successful our history?”

Cox called connected radical to crook disconnected societal media, “touch grass” and prosecute with chap members of their communities. “This is our moment. Do we escalate oregon bash we find an disconnected ramp? It’s a choice,” helium said.

Meanwhile, Kirk’s sidesplitting has unleashed a question of choler among conservatives successful the US.

Some Trump supporters blamed the governmental near and claimed Kirk’s execution was the culmination of years of hostility towards Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement.

“They couldn’t bushed him successful a debate, truthful they assassinated him,” Isabella Maria DeLuca, a January 6 rioter who has been pardoned by Trump and a blimpish activist, wrote connected X.

Mike Davis, a Republican lawyer and salient Trump supporter, said Kirk’s quality to galvanise a caller procreation of conservatives posed “an existential menace to the aboriginal of leftist ideology and power”.