Caption: From left, Utah Department of Public Safety Beau Mason, FBI director Kash Patel, Utah Governor Spencer Cox and Sheriff Mike Smith attend a press conference outside the Doterra Auditorium at Utah Valley University after youth activist and influencer Charlie Kirk was shot during a public event in Orem, Utah, on September 12, 2025
OREM – US authorities said Friday they had captured the man accused of killing prominent right-wing activist Charlie Kirk after a family member helped to turn him in after a frantic manhunt.
“We got him,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox told a press conference.
Cox identified the suspect as Tyler Robinson and said the arrest was made after one of Robinson’s relatives contacted a friend, who then contacted the police.
The arrest raised a bitterly divided country’s hopes of finding answers to the shocking political murder on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old was killed after being hit by a single bullet in his neck while addressing a large crowd at Utah Valley University.
Kirk was an electrifying presence on the US far-right, with a talent for debate and a huge following that helped Trump build the youth vote in his election victory last November.
From the moment of the shooting, Trump has treated the event as a matter of top national importance.
Trump first announced that Kirk had died from his wound, and on Friday it was Trump again who took to Fox News — ahead of the press conference by law enforcement — to say that the main suspect was in custody.
The Republican president has ordered flags at half-mast and said he will attend Kirk’s funeral.
Breakthrough in manhunt
Authorities quickly found the alleged murder weapon, a high-powered hunting rifle, and released photos of a young man dressed in a baseball cap and casual clothing.
However, after detaining, then releasing, two people who turned out to be unconnected to the case, the police and FBI appeared to struggle.
Late Thursday, officials in Orem released more details about the suspect’s clothing and initial movements after the shooting, pleading with the public to help identify him.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the arrest was finally made at 10 pm Thursday — 33 hours after the shooting.
Cox credited assistance from the alleged killer’s own family.
“On the evening of September 11th, a family member of Tyler Robinson reached out to a family friend, who contacted the Washington County sheriff’s office with information that Robinson had confessed to them or implied that he had committed the incident,” he said.
Students at the university on Thursday described their shock and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.
Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.”
“We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.
In Orem Park, several hundred people wearing red MAGA caps and holding American flags attended a vigil on Thursday evening, where they prayed and held a moment of silence.
“It still feels insane that this happened,” Jonathan Silva, 35, told AFP. “It’s totally surreal.”
Seeking death penalty
Cox said his state would pursue the death penalty against the suspect.
Trump said he would back such a move. “I hope he gets the death penalty,” he told Fox News.
Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on Vice President JD Vance’s official plane.
Footage showed Vance with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.
Kirk, whom supporters have hailed as a “martyr,” co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.
The father-of-two used his audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events. (AFP)
