US authorities suspect 22-year-old Tyler Robinson of murdering conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
According to the Daily Mail, Tyler Robinson's father has worked for the Washington County Sheriff's Office for 27 years and his mother works in the disability services. Tyler has two younger brothers. The family lives in a six-room house in Washington, Utah, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) from the scene of the shooting.
Tyler's mother has posted many pictures of her children on social media in recent years. One photo from 2017 shows Tyler wearing a Donald Trump costume for Halloween. Another photo shows him posing with an M2 Browning machine gun.
Tyler was a scholarship student at Utah State University, but only spent one semester there in 2021. He was a registered, nonpartisan voter, but had not voted in the past two state elections. He had no prior contact with the police, so he had no criminal record.
Utah's governor said at a press conference on Thursday that after the shooting, a member of Tyler's family contacted a friend of the family, who contacted police and told them that Tyler had confessed or implied that he had committed the shooting.
AP sources say Robinson's father recognized his son in photos released by authorities and persuaded him to turn himself in. The father spoke to a pastor who helped Robinson contact police.
A family member of Tyler later told police that the man had become increasingly politically active in recent times. Before the shooting, he told them that"hate-filled" Kirk was coming to Utah.
The governor also said that video footage identified Tyler, who arrived near the scene of the attack in a Dodge Challenger on Wednesday morning, four hours before the attack. Investigators found the weapon Tyler used, a.30-06 caliber Mauser with a scope mounted on top, in a wooded area near the scene of the attack. They also found ammunition near the weapon. One was engraved with the words “Hey, fascist! Catch me!”, another with the words “If you’re reading this, you’re gay LMAO” (I’m laughing out loud), and a third with the words “Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao ciao,” a reference to the Italian anti-fascist song.
Tyler Robinson is likely to face the death penalty, which is legal in the state of Utah. US President Donald Trump has said he hopes the man will be sentenced to death. Utah's Republican governor, Spencer Cox, also supports the death penalty.
Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot in the neck on Wednesday at a university event in Utah, where he was answering a student question about trans shooters. The 31-year-old was taken to a hospital but died a short time later.
