Turns out, 22-year old James Tyler Robinson, the suspect arrested for the murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, is as American as can be.
"For the last 33 hours, I had been praying that this person [who murdered Kirk] was from another country,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox said while confirming the arrest of Robinson. “That he was not one of us because we are not like that. But it was one of us.”
Stories in foreign media outlets outlined Robinson’s profile as a brilliant, quiet student who had apparently gone rogue.
While new details are still emerging about the suspect, here’s everything we know so far.
Republican family where guns are normal
Robinson reportedly grew up in a close-knit suburban neighborhood of St George, attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) with his family, who are Republicans according to The New York Times.
His parents have hunting licences and the family’s social media posts over the years showed Robinson and his younger brothers with guns.
However, most of those photos had been deleted by Friday, London’s Financial Times reported.
Most people quoted about him described him as a quiet, academically brilliant kid. His mother is a social worker and his father has a granite countertops business.
Robinson was a student in an electrical apprenticeship program at Dixie Technical College. Before that, he attended Utah State University for one semester as a pre-engineering major.
Political views
According to the Utah governor and media reports, he “became more political” in recent years, expressed dislike of Charlie Kirk and his viewpoints, calling him “full of hate” and “spreading hate.”
Although Robinson is registered to vote he is not affiliated to any political party and has not voted yet, per multiple reports.
Weapon & forensic evidence
A bolt-action Mauser rifle believed to be the murder weapon was recovered nearby the rooftop from where Kirk was shot. Investigators found bullet casings engraved with messages like “Hey fascist! Catch!”.
Also, surveillance footage, digital messages (e.g. on Discord), a palm print, footprints, and forearm imprints allegedly linked Robinson to the scene.
Movements before the murder
Utah Governor Cox on Friday revealed that investigators had interviewed a family member “who stated that Robinson had become more political in recent years”.
The family member said he had attended a family dinner prior to Kirk’s killing and mentioned in a conversation with another family member that the activist was coming to Utah Valley University.
“They talked about why they didn’t like him and the viewpoints he had,” Cox was quoted as saying by Financial Times.
How he was caught
Robinson was nabbed after an old-school tip-off after a high-tech manhunt.
“A family member of Tyler Robinson reached out to a family friend who contacted the Washington County Sheriff’s Office with information that Robinson had confessed to them or implied that he had committed the incident,” Governor Cox said.
The known unknowns
While new evidence is coming to light, here are things that we don’t fully know yet.
Motive: While there are messages and family statements hinting at political disagreement or dislike, investigators have not publicly confirmed a full motive.
Whether he acted alone: All current evidence suggests a single shooter.
Full context of the inscriptions: The engraved messages on bullet casings are unusual, but what exactly they imply (political ideology, online culture, or something else) is under study.