What we know
- Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, 31, was shot and killed during an event he was hosting at Utah Valley University in Orem, just north of Provo.
- A manhunt for the shooter is ongoing — the FBI and the Utah Public Safety Department both said the shooting was a targeted attack. On Thursday, authorities described the suspect as a college-aged.
- Authorities on Thursday said they recovered the firearm used in the shooting in a wooded area, which they described as a “high-powered, bolt-action rifle.” A footprint was also recovered.
- Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance will visit Salt Lake City today to pay respects to Kirk’s family.
- Videos circulating online show Kirk, a co-founder of Turning Point USA, recoiling after a shot was heard, with blood pouring from his neck.
- Senior figures from both sides of the aisle, alongside international leaders, have paid tribute to Kirk.
As of this morning, officials have received more than 130 tips.
“I assure you that all leads and tips are being fully investigated,” said Robert Bohls, special agent in charge for the FBI.
He asked that anyone with video or images from the shooting submit them to the FBI.
The shooter is believed to have used a high-powered bolt-action rifle, Robert Bohls, special agent in charge of the FBI, said at the news conference.
“That rifle was recovered in a wooded area where the shooter had fled,” he said.
The FBI laboratory will be analyzing the weapon.
Investigators have also collected “footwear impression, a palm print and forearm imprints for analysis,” he said.
Officials have been able to track the gunman’s movements before and after he shot Kirk up until he seemingly disappeared.
Utah DPS Commissioner Beau Mason said the shooter arrived on the campus of Utah Valley University at 11:52 a.m. Authorities then tracked the subject through stairwells and up to and across the roof from where he fired the fatal shot.
After the shooting, Mason said officials tracked the shooter’s movements as he moved to the other side of the building, jumped off the roof and fled to a nearby neighborhood.
Officials were combing through the neighborhood and contacting witnesses, as well as anyone with doorbell cameras, to identify leads.
“We do have good video footage of this individual. We are not going to release that at this time,” Mason said. “We are working through some technologies and some ways to identify this individual.”
Mason added, “If we are unsuccessful, we will reach out to you as the media, and we will push that publicly to help us identify them. But we are confident in our abilities right now, and we would like to move forward in a manner that keeps everyone safe and then moves this process, appropriately.”
Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason began this morning’s press conference by acknowledging 9/11 as authorities continue to look for the shooter.
“Historically, on 9/11, law enforcement has come together as a group to recognize and honor those who sacrificed to preserve the ideals of this country, the freedoms of this country,” Mason said. “Instead, we find ourselves today hunting a murderer who chose to violate our rights, the rights of an individual within this country.”
A suspect in Charlie Kirk’s assassination remains at large, with few leads for authorities to follow in their hunt for the person responsible.
Overnight, some names were thrown into the mix, and at least two men were taken into custody and later released, but they all turned out to be dead ends. It remains unclear who this person is and where they are.
Officials have said they saw the person, who was wearing dark clothing, flee the scene on security video from a rooftop about 200 yards from where Kirk was speaking.
The shooter’s distance indicated they were using a rifle or a hunting rifle, but authorities have yet to identify the gun used in the assassination.
The person was set up far enough away from the secured event to get a good angle to fire at Kirk and had the discipline to fire only one shot and then disappear. The lack of shots made it more difficult for officials to follow the shooter.
No motive has been identified, but authorities have called it a “targeted attack” and a “political assassination.”
Officials are highly concerned about the uprising of targeted violence and political violence in the U.S.
