A man believed to be the shooter who killed Christian conservative activist Charlie Kirk at a TPUSA college event in Utah has been arrested, President Donald Trump has said.
In an interview on Fox News on Friday morning, Trump said, “I think, with a high degree of certainty, we have him — in custody ... everyone did a great job. We worked with the local police, the governor, everybody did a great job.”
He continued, “I hope that he [is] going to be found guilty, I would imagine, and I hope he gets the death penalty. What he did, Charlie Kirk, was the finest person, but he didn't deserve this. He worked so hard and so well. Everybody liked him. I've been watching, even the Left is having a hard time,” the president added.
Authorities confirmed that the suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson of Utah, is in the custody of U.S. Marshals, MSNBC reported, adding that a family member turned him in after a minister recognized the suspect and got in contact with the family.
US Vice President JD Vance, who was a close friend of Kirk's, said on X, “This is a big breakthrough, and everyone who helped – from the law enforcement professionals to the people giving tips – deserves our credit and gratitude."
He added, “Say a prayer for [wife] Erika Kirk and those two beautiful babies. We took a big step this morning in getting justice for Charlie, and for his family. Thanks be to God for that.”
An influential conservative activist, the 31-year-old Kirk was speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem on Wednesday when he was fatally shot in the neck at 12:20 p.m. Mountain time.
The campus was put on lockdown while Kirk was rushed to a local hospital, with the husband and father of two young children dying from his wound shortly after the shooting.
At a press conference held Thursday morning, FBI Special Agent Robert Bohls said that authorities had recovered a “high-powered bolt-action rifle” believed to be the murder weapon. Authorities also found shoe prints, a palm print and forearm imprints in a wooded area near campus that the shooter had fled to.
Beau Mason, commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, told those gathered at the press conference that the suspect was “college-age” and that they had video images of him.
“We do have good video footage of this individual, we are not going to release that at this time,” Mason said earlier in the day, adding that if authorities “are unsuccessful” in identifying the suspect, then “we will reach out” to the media and the public “to help.”
Later that day, FBI Salt Lake City issued a brief statement explaining that they were “offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the identification and arrest of the individual(s) responsible for the murder of Charlie Kirk.”
The FBI office also released a couple of images showing a person of interest. The images show an individual wearing sunglasses, a blue cap featuring a triangle logo, and a black, long-sleeved shirt with an image of an American flag and an eagle.
Last night, another press conference was held in which authorities released four additional images and a video showing the suspect jumping off the roof of a building after the shooting.
