The suspect in the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk allegedly made disparaging comments about the conservative influencer during a family dinner days before Wednesday's attack at Utah Valley University.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said during a news conference Friday that Tyler Robinson, 22, expressed his dislike of Kirk, 31, the co-founder and CEO of Turning Point USA. The briefing aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform.
"Investigators interviewed a family member of Robinson who stated that Robinson had become more political in recent years," Cox, a Republican, said. "The family member referenced a recent incident in which Robinson came to dinner ... and in the conversation with another family member, Robinson mentioned Charlie Kirk was coming to [Utah Valley University].
"They talked about why they didn't like him and the viewpoints that he had. The family member also stated Kirk was full of hate and spreading hate."
Robinson was arrested Thursday night after his father recognized him from images released by the FBI, multiple media outlets reported. His father urged him to turn himself in. Robinson initially said he would rather kill himself than surrender but was persuaded to speak with a local youth minister who also works with the U.S. Marshals Service, the Daily Mail reported.
Robinson was booked on charges of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a weapon causing serious bodily injury and obstruction of justice. Aggravated murder carries the possibility of the death penalty. Formal charges are expected early next week.
Cox said Robinson's roommate directed investigators to Discord, where the suspect allegedly posted about a rifle and the need to retrieve it from a drop point. The roommate showed investigators several messages and allowed them to take photos of the screen. The posts described leaving a rifle in a bush wrapped in a towel, watching the location, engraved bullets, adding a scope and changing outfits.
Law enforcement said Thursday they recovered a rifle wrapped in a towel from a wooded area near the university's campus in Orem. Cox identified it as a Mauser Model 98, .30-06 caliber bolt-action rifle with a mounted scope.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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