The man accused of fatally shooting right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was charged with aggravated murder on Tuesday, with prosecutors saying they will seek the death penalty.
Tyler Robinson, 22, was taken into custody on 12 September in his native Utah following a 33-hour manhunt involving local law enforcement and the FBI.
Robinson is being held without bail in a special housing unit at the Utah County Jail.
In addition to aggravated murder, Robinson faces multiple other charges, including felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering and committing violent crime in the presence of children.
Kirk, 31, died of a single gunshot wound while speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem on 10 September. CCTV video showed the suspect fleeing from a rooftop after the shot was fired before escaping into a nearby wooded area.
In the hours that followed, police released several images of the suspect and offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to their arrest. Robinson’s father later recognised him from the images, investigators said, and eventually persuaded him to surrender.
A motive for the killing is yet to be revealed by officials. At a press briefing on Friday, the FBI refused to discuss Robinson’s background, political leanings or a possible motive, saying the investigation was ongoing.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox said a family member told investigators that Robinson had become “more political” in recent years. The relative also said that during a dinner conversation before the attack, Robinson had discussed Kirk’s upcoming event at Utah Valley University, according to Cox.
“They talked about why they didn’t like him and the viewpoints that he had,” Cox said.
Utah County Attorney Gray said Robinson was living with a roommate who was transgender transitioning into a female.
Gray said Robinson left a note under his keyboard for his roommate, which allegedly said: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I’m going to take it.”
In the hours before Robinson handed himself in, Gray said Robinson’s mother saw footage of the suspected killer on the news and thought it looked like her son, which led his father to confront him.
Robinson has no prior convictions and no history of violent offences, according to a Public Safety Assessment Report filed in Utah state court.
Public records reviewed by the BBC suggest Robinson had in the past registered as an unaffiliated, or nonpartisan, voter in Utah. His parents, Matthew Carl Robinson and Amber Denise Robinson, are registered Republicans, according to state records.
Robinson, who had an apartment in St George near his family home, was not enrolled at Utah Valley University where Kirk was killed.
In a statement, the Utah Board of Higher Education said he was a third-year student in the electrical apprenticeship programme at Dixie Technical College.
“He previously spent one semester at Utah State University in 2021 and earned concurrent enrolment credits through Utah Tech University while in high school between 2019 and 2021,” it added.
Robinson’s father runs a kitchen countertop and cabinet installation business, while his mother is a social worker. The family is Mormon and active in the local church.
Investigators also are looking at social media accounts used by Robinson, and any signs that anyone may have known about or encouraged the shooting beforehand.
Investigators examine Discord messages
Authorities said Robinson was active on Discord, a social media platform primarily used by gamers, but now also popular in other communities.
He appeared to take responsibility for the shooting in a message on the platform, a company spokesperson said. The message was reportedly sent about two hours before Robinson was arrested on 12 September.
“Hey guys, I have bad news for you all,” said the message from an account that allegedly belongs to the suspect, which was first reported by the Washington Post. “It was me at UVU yesterday. im (sic) sorry for all of this.”
Discord later said his account had been suspended. “We have removed the suspect’s account for violating our off-platform behaviour policy,” it said.
During a hearing in Congress, FBI Director Patel said more than 20 people in a Discord group chat with Robinson would be questioned by investigators. He said the FBI was working to secure information from the chat.
He also said others could have been involved in the shooting, without giving further detail.
According to an affidavit, a roommate of Robinson’s showed investigators messages on Discord from a contact named “Tyler”, which referenced a rifle “drop point” and instructions about retrieving and hiding the weapon.
Officials, meanwhile, have said Robinson is “not co-operating” with authorities and has not confessed to carrying out the shooting in police interviews.
DNA found on rifle’s trigger
Utah county attorney Gray said police recovered the suspected weapon – a rifle – near the scene of the shooting.
DNA consistent with Robinson’s was found on the rifle’s trigger, he said, adding that the firearm was unique and had once belonged to Robinson’s grandfather.
Earlier, FBI Director Kash Patel said DNA discovered on a towel wrapped around the rifle matched the suspect.
As part of their investigation, officials are also examining shell casings recovered from the scene.
Two casings displayed apparent references to online trolling humour. The inscription “notices bulges OwO what’s this?” on a fired shell casing may refer to a “copypasta” – a piece of text that is repeated over and over again, often to troll people online.
Another casing, that was not fired, was inscribed with the words: “If you read this, you are gay lmao”.
One unfired casing had the words “Hey fascist! Catch!” and an up, right and three down arrows.
The three down arrows alone could be a common symbol used for anti-fascism. But as a whole, the arrows could reference a sequence of control inputs used in a popular video game – although this remains unclear.
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