The man accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk at a Utah university on Wednesday was reportedly confronted by his father before his arrest.
Tyler Robinson, 22, was apprehended on Thursday, about 36 hours after Kirk, 31, was fatally shot at Utah Valley University in Orem. Citing unidentified law enforcement officials, the New York Post reported that Robinson’s father confronted him after the FBI released photos of the suspect.
According to the sources, Robinson threatened to kill himself instead of turning himself in. Robinson’s father allegedly encouraged him to speak with a youth minister who works with the U.S. Marshals Service’s fugitive task force.
The sources told the New York Post that the FBI apprehended Robinson after his youth minister called a deputy from the U.S. Marshals Service.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox said authorities interviewed Robinson’s roommate, who attributed several comments on Discord to Robinson. Cox said “messages affiliated with the contact ‘Tyler’” discussed obtaining a rifle from a drop point, leaving the rifle wrapped in a towel in a bush, engraving the bullets, and changing his outfit.
However, a Discord spokesperson told CNN that there is no indication Robinson used the platform to promote violence or plan Kirk’s killing.
“These were communications between the suspect’s roommate and a friend after the shooting, where the roommate was recounting the contents of a note the suspect had left elsewhere,” Jud Hoffman, vice president of trust and safety at Discord, explained in the statement.
Graphic video footage showed Kirk being shot in the neck at Utah Valley College on Wednesday. He was at the university for the first stop of his “The American Comeback” tour, which involves him engaging in political debates with members of the audience.
Authorities said the single bullet was fired from the university’s Losee Center, located 200 yards away from the tent Kirk was situated under, when he was mortally wounded.
The suspect is believed to have jumped off the roof and fled to a nearby neighborhood.
Before Robinson’s capture, a Mauser .30 caliber bolt-action rifle was discovered in the woods not far from where the shooting took place. The rifle reportedly had a spent cartridge and three rounds in the magazine.
Cox claimed the cartridges from the rifle had various messages, including, “hey fascist! catch!” with several arrows, “oh bella ciao bella ciao bella ciao ciao ciao,” and “if you read this you are gay lmao.” The spent casing reportedly had the message, “notices bulges oWo what’s this.”
Robinson remains jailed without bail on preliminary charges of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm and obstruction of justice. The Utah County attorney’s office said Robinson’s first court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday.
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[Feature Photo: FBI]
