Suspect arrested in Charlie Kirk assassination
Police have arrested a suspect in the assassination of Charlie Kirk on a Utah college campus earlier this week, according to a Fox News report this morning.
Kirk, a 31-year-old father of two, was sitting under a tent around 12:20 p.m. Wednesday, debating with students on current affairs issues, when a single shot rang out. Video shows him struck in the neck before he slumped out of his chair.
He had been invited to speak at Utah Valley University by the campus chapter of Turning Point USA, a national conservative student group he founded.
"I think with a high-degree of certainty, we have him," President Donald Trump revealed on Fox & Friends Friday morning. He added that, "essentially, someone who knew him turned him in."
Authorities released more photos and a video of the suspect Thursday evening and asked for additional help from the public. The FBI has already received more than 7,000 tips, the highest number since the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox told reporters Thursday evening at Utah Valley University, where Kirk was shot and killed Wednesday during an outdoor appearance before approximately 3,000 people.
As Utah Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason narrated, a video was shown of the university parking lot and the suspect running on the roof of a building, then jumping off and onto the grass below.
“After he crossed the street, he moved into the wooded area,” Mason said.
Authorities said the unidentified suspect wore sunglasses, a black T-shirt with an American flag and an eagle on it, along with dark jeans and Converse tennis shoes with white on them.
Cox said law enforcement needs all the help it can get. People with videos, photos or information can visit www.fbi.gov/utahvalleyshooting or call 1-800-CALL-FBI. Anyone with information without multimedia is asked to call 1-800-FBI or visit tips.fbi.gov.
The FBI said it is offering a $100,000 award for information leading to the identification and arrest of the individual or individuals responsible for the murder.
“All of the forensic evidence is being processed at the state lab and the federal lab on the East Coast,” Cox said. “We’re working in tandem together.”
Cox cautioned against reading too much on social media, where he said there has been a lot of incorrect details. “We have bots from China, Russia trying to distill disinformation.”