A 22-year-old man was arrested Thursday in connection with the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Tyler Robinson, the son of a Washington County sheriff’s deputy, was taken into custody after a 33-hour manhunt.
The arrest followed Kirk’s death at a speaking event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, where he was fatally shot by a rifleman from a rooftop 150 yards away.
Authorities said Robinson confessed to his father, who then contacted a youth pastor and U.S. Marshals to arrange his son’s surrender.
The arrest came shortly after the FBI released clear surveillance images of the suspect and announced a $100,000 reward.
Investigators said their preliminary review of the evidence points to a premeditated, ideologically motivated attack.
They recovered the murder weapon, a high-powered rifle, wrapped in a towel, near the campus.
Engraved bullet casings found with the weapon contained messages including, “Hey fascist! Catch!” and “Bella ciao,” a phrase from an Italian anti-fascist song.
Officials reviewing Robinson’s Discord messages said he discussed detailed plans for the attack, including retrieving a rifle and changing outfits.
Robinson is not a student at the university, but he has been living with his family in Washington, Utah.
The investigation encountered a brief misstep when FBI Director Kash Patel incorrectly announced a suspect was in custody before backtracking hours later.
Governor Spencer Cox, who built a political brand as the Republican antidote for an age of anger by imploring a divided United States to “disagree better” through civil discussions and bridge-building service projects, praised the Robinson family for “doing the right thing” in facilitating the surrender.
“Our nation is broken,” said Cox, as he ticked off a growing list of political violence targeting Republicans, including Trump, and Democrats, including the assassination of a Democratic state lawmaker in Minnesota and the attempted assassination of Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania.
Cox, like many other socially conservative Latter-day Saints who take decorum and character seriously, vowed not to vote for Trump last year, but the governor reversed course and endorsed the fascist tyrant after he survived a July 2024 assassination attempt.
Offering a different view more consistent with a desire for civil war, Trump vowed to “find each and every one of those who contributed to this atrocity and to other political violence, including the organizations that fund it and support it.”
“They are at war with us, whether we want to accept it or not,” said right-wing Fox News commentator Jesse Watters, who added that “we are going to avenge Charlie’s death in the way that Charlie wanted to be avenged.”
Robinson is expected to be formally charged early next week and could face the death penalty.
The assassination has drawn widespread condemnation and intensified concerns over the nation’s political divisions.