A video follows the suspect's movements as he climbs onto the roof from which he allegedly fired, from 130-180 meters away
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW YORK - The weapon, the imprints of a forearm, the palm of a hand and a shoe, a video that follows the suspect's movements as he climbs onto the roof from which he allegedly fired, from 130-180 meters away, at Charlie Kirk: these are the elements on which the authorities have continued to work in the search for the killer. The two people initially arrested have been released and yesterday images of the suspect were released. He already has a name and surname, which for now are being kept confidential.
The rifle in the woods
Robert Bohls, special agent in charge of the FBI's Salt Lake City, Utah office, said at a press conference that the weapon, found wrapped in a towel in a wooded area in a neighborhood near the campus (which is located in Oren, 60 km from Salt Lake City ) is a high-powered, manually operated rifle. It could be an old .30-06 caliber Mauser common among snipers and hunters, the New York Times speculates. Investigators had initially said they would not release images of the suspect unless they could identify him, but then decided to release two shots, offering $100,000 for information.
The young man with the eagle on his T-shirt
It shows a young man wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, jeans, and a black T-shirt with a blurry image. It appears to be a patriotic T-shirt, available online for $6, showing an eagle soaring in front of an American flag and the words “Land of the Free, Home of the Brave.” According to authorities, the suspect arrived on campus shortly before noon (the attack occurred at 12:10 p.m.), using stairs to reach the roof of a campus building, the Losee Center, which had a good view of where Kirk was scheduled to speak. A video shot by a member of the audience shows a small figure lying on the roof before the murder. After the shot — a single shot to the neck — someone is seen running down the building.
The writing on the ammunition
The Wall Street Journal was the first to reveal that, according to preliminary information released by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, federal and local officials found ammunition with the rifle that appeared to be engraved with phrases expressing transgender and anti-fascist ideology. An official emphasized that this information needs to be verified and that it could have been misinterpreted. CNN, which chose not to publish the information, has received criticism.
The viewfinder was enough
The killer fired from a distance similar to that of the attempted assassination of Trump last year in Butler, Pennsylvania (120-150 meters, also from a rooftop). It's unclear whether the killer has military training or taught himself, perhaps by relying on YouTube videos. Nicholas Ranstad, a US Army sergeant and the record-breaking sniper in Afghanistan, favors the latter hypothesis:"Security was almost non-existent... and shooting from above is easy," he told the Daily Mail, describing the square where Kirk was standing as a sort of bowl low among the buildings.
People say it's a professional shot. But from that distance, it's not difficult with a rifle, if it had a scope, former FBI agent James Gagliano told Fox News. It's unclear how far away the killer might have gotten. When you get off the roof, there's a parking lot out back, and it's very close to I-15. In three to five minutes, he could have been driving miles away. Provo Airport is only 45 minutes away.
