Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer brought into custody after confessing to father

A 22-year-old from Utah has been arrested over the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was shot dead while on stage at a university event earlier this week.

Tyler Robinson was taken into custody late on Thursday, after a 33-hour manhunt that ended after his father helped persuade him to surrender to police.

His arrest was first announced by US President Donald Trump, who called for the suspect to face the death penalty.

The killing of Kirk, who was shot while debating with students on Wednesday, has shocked Americans and laid bare the country’s sharp partisan divisions.

Investigators said at a news conference on Friday that the suspect had confessed to his father and said he would rather take his own life than surrender. The father then called a youth pastor who is a family friend.

Both men tried to calm the suspect down, police said. The pastor, who also serves as a court security officer, later called the US Marshals, who detained the suspect at around 22:00 local time on Thursday.

Utah’s Governor Spencer Cox said surveillance images showed Mr Robinson arriving on the campus of Utah Valley University around four hours before a shot rang out, killing Kirk and sending students running for cover.

Cox told journalists that when Mr Robinson was taken into custody, he was wearing clothing similar to what was seen on CCTV cameras at the scene of the shooting.

The governor added that investigators had interviewed a family member, who said the suspect had become more political in recent years.

Cox said the family member had spoken of a recent incident when Mr Robinson had mentioned that Kirk was coming to Utah and that he “was full of hate and spreading hate”.

Cox said investigators had also spoken to a roommate of the suspect who had shown them exchanges of messages with an account named “Tyler” on the messaging app Discord.

The messages referred to a need to retrieve a rifle from “a drop point” and the firearm being left in a bush, wrapped in a towel.

The FBI said on Thursday that they had found the suspected weapon – an imported Mauser .30-06 bolt action rifle – wrapped in a towel in a wooded area near campus.

Cox told reporters that inscriptions had been found engraved on casings recovered with the rifle, which had a scope mounted on top of it.

The inscriptions included “hey fascist! CATCH!” and “O Bella ciao, Bella ciao”.

“Bella ciao” means “goodbye beautiful” in Italian. It is also the title of a song dedicated to the Italian resistance that fought against the occupying troops of Nazi Germany.

Utah’s governor said he was not aware of any potential further arrests in the investigation.

State prosecutors said they planned to file formal charges against Mr Robinson on Tuesday.

He is accused of aggravated murder, obstruction of justice, and felony discharge of a firearm, according to a Utah County Sheriff inmate booking sheet obtained by the BBC.

Students at Utah Valley University told the BBC they were relieved to hear of the arrest.

The campus has been closed since the shooting on Wednesday afternoon – with yellow tape and police vehicles blocking much of the school.

“He was apprehended in Washington County, which is where I’m from,” said first-year student McKinley Shinkle. “I just feel deeply ashamed.”

“I’m definitely relieved,” added McKinley’s cousin Anthony. “I’m just anxious now to hear his motives and why this happened.”

Public records viewed by the BBC suggest Mr Robinson had registered as an unaffiliated – or nonpartisan – voter in Utah in the past. Matthew Carl Robinson, the suspect’s father, and Amber Denise Robinson, the suspect’s mother, are registered Republicans, state records show.

Voting records indicate that he did not vote in the last presidential election, according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner. He was not old enough to vote in 2020.

The suspect lives in St George, Utah, near Zion National Park, about 250 miles (400km) south-west of the campus where Kirk was shot.

He is a third-year student in an electrical apprenticeship programme at Dixie Technical College in south-west Utah, where he lived, a spokesperson for Utah Valley University (UVU) told the BBC.

Social media accounts indicate Mr Robinson’s father runs a kitchen countertop and cabinet installation business, while his mother is a social worker. The family is Mormon and active in the local church.