Charlie Kirk assassin suspect in custody

Tyler Robinson (22) Image Credit: Utah Governor's Office via The Independent

After a day-and-a-half search, a Utah man suspected of carrying out the assassination of conservative political pundit, Charlie Kirk, has been arrested.

He is believed to have acted alone, though the investigation remains ongoing. He will be formally charged with murder and weapons charges on Tuesday according to the Utah Attorney General's office.

Utah Valley University                                                                                               Image Credit: FBI and Utah law enforcement officials via Associated Press

22-year-old Tyler Robinson was formerly a student at Utah State University on an academic scholarship, but left after one semester in 2021. Since then, he has been in his third year at an electrician's apprenticeship at Dixie Technical College. He apparently has no reports of a prior criminal record.

His family revealed that he had become more politically motivated in recent years, even mentioning that Charlie Kirk was coming to Utah at a dinner conversation. His father reportedly recognized his face on the news that the FBI provided, and urged him to turn himself in.

A roommate of Robinson's provided some context and explanation to Robinson's method. Robinson reportedly used the social networking site, Discord, to communicate with a contact to discuss a rifle wrapped in a towel and a scope. A Discord spokesperson said:

"In the course of our investigation, we identified a Discord account associated with the suspect, but have found no evidence that the suspect planned this incident or promoted violence on Discord ... 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. We have removed the suspect’s account for violating our off-platform behavior policy.

"We strongly condemn violence of any kind, including political violence, and we will continue to coordinate closely with law enforcement." -Discord Spokesperson

The weapon was reportedly a .30-caliber, bolt-action rifle. It was found in a wooded area along a path near the main campus, wrapped in a towel.

The bullets that Robinson allegedly fired were engraved with political messages. One such message was reported as reading, "Hey fascist! Catch!" according to Utah Governor Spencer Cox.

At the moment, it is not clear what Robinson's motivations were or what plea he will make with the prosecutors.