Charlie Kirk's killer is believed to have deliberately selected a rooftop that allowed for a quick escape and the ability to be "miles and miles away" within minutes, according to a retired FBI expert.
The Washington Post reported that the shooter — who remained at large as of midday Thursday — fired a single, fatal shot from the top of the Losee Center Building at Utah Valley University, about 200 yards from where Kirk was seated under a pop-up tent, addressing an audience of roughly 3,000 people, authorities said.
"If you come off that roof, and I've seen the drone footage of this, there's an open-air parking lot behind that building," retired FBI supervising agent James Gagliano told Fox & Friends.
"It's spitting distance from I-15 ... a major thoroughfare there," Gagliano added.
"So this is a big concern because this person, within three-five minutes of that shot going off, that person could have been in a vehicle on his way out and miles and miles away. Provo Airport's only about 45 minutes from there," he continued, suggesting the shooter could have quickly left the state.
Kirk, 31, a married father of two, was fatally struck in the neck during the outdoor college event on Wednesday. The gunfire caused panic among students, who screamed and fled as Kirk collapsed.
Video footage captured just after the gunshot appears to show a small, dark figure running across a rooftop in the distance as the crowd ducked for cover. Another recording from earlier shows a figure lying prone on the same rooftop from which the shot was fired. Kirk was hit moments later.
"People are suggesting this was a professional hit. And yet from that distance, we're talking a little over 500 feet, just short of 200 yards, that's not a tough shot with a rifle, if this suspect had a scope," Gagliano said. "It's a very easy shot."
Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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