Agency Report
Authorities announced Friday they have taken into custody the person they believe shot dead Charlie Kirk, a right-wing activist and close ally of President Donald Trump.
Here is what we know so far.
-The suspect –
Authorities say 22-year-old Tyler Robinson is in custody.
He was arrested in St George, Utah, about 250 miles from the town of Orem, where Kirk was shot dead while speaking to a crowd at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.
Law enforcement said his family had helped turn him in after he had suggested he was the shooter.
-The shooting –
Kirk, head of the country’s largest conservative youth movement, which he co-founded in 2012 at the age of 18, was speaking at around noon Wednesday when a shot rang out.
The 31-year-old collapsed with a neck wound, according to a video clip taken from nearby. He was pronounced dead soon after in an announcement by Trump.
Authorities say Robinson used a high-powered, bolt-action rifle, firing from the roof of a building up to 200 yards (185 meters) away from his target. They said the killer was lying prone, a position that can increase accuracy.
-The motive –
Kirk was a hero to right-wingers and helped Trump build a large youth vote in his November presidential election victory. He was also a highly divisive figure, espousing hardline views on race, gender, and gun ownership.
Even his many critics often hailed Kirk’s willingness to debate, however. Kirk was on a speaking tour when he went to the Utah university.
Authorities said they did not yet know the alleged shooter’s motive. He was not a student from the university.
Clues may lie in the inscriptions found on bullet casings at the crime scene.
One cartridge had written on it, “Hey, fascist! Catch!” said Utah Governor Spencer Cox.
Another featured “Bella ciao,” apparently a reference to a World War II-era Italian anti-fascist song.
Other cartridges were marked with symbols and wording that appeared to be from the online gaming culture.
The United States has seen repeated politically motivated shootings and assaults over the last decade, including two assassination attempts on Trump — in addition to a long history of political violence stretching back decades.
Mass shootings by typically young, disturbed men are also common, and powerful firearms are easily available.
-The political reaction –
Politicians on all sides quickly condemned the killing, many of them calling on Americans to heal growing divisions.
Trump’s first reaction on Wednesday was to blame “the radical left.” He toned his rhetoric down on Thursday and said that Kirk had been “an advocate of nonviolence.”
“That’s the way I’d like to see people respond,” he said.
Kirk is being treated as a national hero by the Trump administration.
Trump announced on Thursday he would posthumously decorate Kirk with America’s highest civilian honor, the Medal of Freedom.
The Republican president also told reporters that he would attend Kirk’s funeral.
Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on Vice President JD Vance’s official plane.
AFP
