UTAH — A suspect in the shooting and killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is now in custody, FBI Director Kash Patel announced.
“The subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody. Thank you to the local and state authorities in Utah for your partnership with @fbi,” Patel wrote in a post on X.
What we know
• Charlie Kirk, the conservative political activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was killed after being shot at an event at Utah Valley University.
• A suspect in the shooting is in custody, FBI Director Kash Patel said on social media. Authorities are expected to hold a news conference shortly. We will have updates as soon as they become available.
• As President Donald Trump remade the Republican Party, Kirk embodied the party’s newfound populist conservatism in the social media age. Trump has credited Kirk with galvanizing and mobilizing the youth vote for him.
A suspect held earlier was released because he was not the “accurate person of interest,” official says
From CNN’s Aditi Sangal
A suspect was held shortly after the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk but then released because he was not the “accurate person of interest,” according to Beau Mason, commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety.
“He was released from custody after we identified that he did not match the shooting suspect and was not an accurate person of interest. However, he has been booked in the county jail by Utah Valley University Police Department for obstruction of justice. We do still have an active investigation for the person of interest,” Mason said at a news briefing.
Officials believe shooting was a targeted attack
From CNN’s Tori B. Powell
The shooter involved in today’s incident fired one shot at one person, according to the Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason.
Officials do believe it was “a targeted attack towards one individual,” he said at a news conference.
Utah Department of Public Safety and FBI are leading criminal investigation into Kirk’s death, official says
From CNN’s Elise Hammond
The Utah Department of Public Safety and the FBI will be co-leading the criminal investigation into the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the state’s public safety commissioner, Beau Mason, said.
After Kirk was shot, he was taken “by private vehicle” to Timpanogos Regional Hospital, where he died, Mason said at a Wednesday news conference.