Tyler Robinson, the man suspected of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk during a campus event at a Utah university, had eluded authorities for more than a day.
Cox said that after Robinson’s father recognized his son in the distributed photographs, he told Robinson to turn himself in.
What we know about Robinson At the press conference, Cox said Robinson had become “more political in recent years.”
One of the individuals told ABC News that Robinson was not in class on the day of the Kirk shooting.
What Robinson neighbors said Neighbors of Robinson’s parents in Washington, Utah, described the Robinson family as loving and quiet.
Tyler Robinson had been evading authorities for over a day. Robinson is suspected of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk during an event at a Utah university.
But according to officials, a sequence of events finally resulted in the 22-year-old Robinson’s arrest after his father identified him from photos distributed by authorities.
Although there are still a lot of unsolved questions surrounding the murder, which authorities have referred to as a “political assassination,” information from authorities and people who know Robinson has started to piece together a picture of the suspected shooter.
Here are the facts we currently know about Robinson, the shooting, and his capture.
How Robinson was captured.
At a press conference on Friday morning, Utah Gov. In his opening statement, Spencer Cox said, “Good morning, gentlemen and ladies. We got him. “.”.
According to Cox, Robinson was instructed to turn himself in by his father after he recognized his son in the distributed photos. According to officials, Robinson first said no but later had second thoughts.
The father then summoned a U.S. youth pastor. S. Marshalls task force leader. The officer suggested that Robinson remain where he was. After that, the FBI was informed of this information.
Cox praised Robinson’s family, saying they made the correct decision. “.”.
Cox said at the press conference that after identifying Robinson, police also spoke with his roommate, who provided them with a message that Robinson had sent to his roommate.
“These messages contained messages from the contact Tyler, indicating that a rifle needed to be retrieved from a drop point, leaving it in a bush,” Cox stated.
According to authorities, the messages also mentioned engraving bullets, a scope, and the rifle’s uniqueness.
Several law enforcement sources told ABC News that the weapon is an older, towel-wrapped Mauser .30-06 caliber bolt action rifle that was imported. According to the sources, the suspect’s path of travel seems to correspond with the firearm’s location.
the purported words written on shell casings.
What was engraved on the casings discovered at the scene was also explained by Cox.
One of the three unfired casings, according to Cox, said, “Hey fascist! CATCH!” and had three arrows pointing down then to the right and up.
Another unfired casing said, “O Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Bella ciao, Ciao, ciao!” as if referring to the Italian anti-fascist song that became popular after World War II. Another said, “If you read this, you are GAY Lmao.”. “..”.
The writings on the casings have unclear meanings. Additionally, it’s unclear if the writings are intended to divert or divert investigators.
With the exception of a mention of fascism, which Cox claimed “speaks for itself,” he did not go into detail about the significance of the other texts.
It’s still unclear what the suspect’s intentions are.
Police apprehended Robinson within 33 hours of the shooting and were on the scene within 16 minutes, according to FBI Director Kash Patel.
According to the governor, “this is a very much an ongoing investigation, and we will continue to work with state and local authorities to develop the investigation to provide them the evidence they need for their ongoing prosecutions,” Patel stated.
Our knowledge of Robinson.
Cox claimed that Robinson had grown “more political in recent years” during the press conference. “.
Cox said that during a dinner conversation with a family member, Robinson mentioned that Kirk would be visiting Utah Valley University. The family member said Kirk was “full of hate and spreading hate,” according to Cox, as Robinson and the family members talked about why they didn’t like Kirk and his opinions.
Robinson is listed as registered to vote without identifying with any party, according to online voter registration records.
Due to his failure to cast a ballot in two regular general elections and his failure to reply to a notice from the county clerk, he is listed as an “inactive” voter.
According to the records, Robinson’s parents are both registered Republicans.
ACT scores, hunting, and social media posts.
There are also several anti-Democratic memes on an Instagram page that looks to be owned by Robinson’s father and is being examined by authorities as part of the investigation.
Robinson’s father also shared a picture of a sunset with the caption, “A new dawn for America!” the day after the 2024 election, which was won by President Trump.
Law enforcement is looking into a Facebook post from August 2020 that appeared to be from Tyler Robinson’s mother and said, “This boy is a genius, and I am hoping he’ll pick Utah college and stay close to momma!”.
In the post, a screenshot of Robinson’s ACT scorecard indicates that he received a score of 34, which puts him in the 99th percentile of test takers nationwide.
It appears from other social media that Robinson had hunting experience. Law enforcement is looking at a 2017 photo of Tyler Robinson and what looks to be a younger brother posing next to a dead deer that was uploaded to an Instagram account that seems to be owned by Tyler’s father. This picture has the caption, “First black powder buck! Good job boys.”.
Authorities stated that Robinson lived with his family in Washington County, Utah, and was not a student at Utah Valley University.
Two individuals who know Robinson but asked not to be named said that he is currently enrolled at Dixie Technical College in Utah, a trade school where he was allegedly pursuing a career as an electrician.
Robinson was not in class on the day of the Kirk shooting, according to one of the people who spoke to ABC News.
Robinson had previously gone to Pine View High School in St. ABC News reviewed an online graduation video that showed George graduating in 2021. A university representative claims that he then spent one semester at Utah State University in 2021.
While describing Robinson as “friendly” but “a little more reserved,” a classmate who claims to have known him for years told ABC News that they are “stunned” to learn that he may have carried out this attack. They also said that they “never really heard him talk political.”. “..”.
Robinson never displayed any overt “hate or malice towards other people,” the classmate continued. “.
The classmate remarked, “I never heard him talk politically,” emphasizing that they were not close friends. He never mentioned guns to me. “.
What the neighbors of Robinson said.
Robinson’s parents lived in Washington, Utah, and their neighbors said the Robinson family was quiet and loving.
Living close to the Robinsons, Kristin Schwiermann said she was his childhood neighbor and the head custodian at Riverside Elementary, where he previously attended school.
“At that age, he was not as quiet as he is now, but he was very active, had a few friends at school, and stayed to himself mostly, but very, very smart,” she told ABC News. “.
“They just seem like a very hard-working, down-to-earth family,” she said, describing the Robinsons as “very loving” parents. “.”.
About ten years ago, Robinson was eager to make money and took on odd jobs like cleaning the yard and washing the car, according to neighbor Alenea Shaw. “He was just a cute little boy,” she remarked.
She claimed that the family kept to themselves and was not very gregarious.
Her words were, “They were just very quiet,”.
Authorities said they had conducted about 200 interviews and received over 7,000 tips and leads as the search for the shooting suspect began its third day.
Michael Levine, Lucien Bruggeman, Chris Looft, Kerem Inal, Laura Romero, Katherine Faulders, Megan Christie, and Tonya Simpson all contributed to this report from ABC News.
