The Utah trade school student jailed on suspicion of fatally shooting right-wing activist Charlie Kirk faces formal charges this week, according to the governor, from an act of violence widely seen as a foreboding inflection point in U.S. politics.
Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested on Thursday night after relatives and a family friend alerted authorities that he had implicated himself in the crime, Governor Spencer Cox said on Friday, telling a news conference, "We got him." The arrest capped a 33-hour manhunt for the lone suspect in Wednesday's killing, which President Donald Trump has called a "heinous assassination."
Kirk, co-founder of the conservative student group Turning Point USA and a staunch Trump ally, was killed by a single rifle shot fired from a rooftop during an outdoor event attended by 3,000 people at Utah Valley University in Orem, about 65 kilometers from Salt Lake City. A bolt-action rifle believed to be the murder weapon was found nearby, and police released images from surveillance cameras showing a "person of interest" wearing dark clothing and sunglasses.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.