Federal investigators say Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old man suspected of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, has been linked to the crime through a DNA match and a disturbing note recovered during the investigation.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed on Monday that Robinson’s DNA was found on a screwdriver and a towel wrapped around the suspected murder weapon.
“I can report today that the DNA hits from the towel that was wrapped around the firearm and the DNA on the screwdriver are positively processed for the suspect in custody,” Patel said during an interview on Fox & Friends.
Robinson, who has refused to speak with law enforcement, is being held under “special watch” in Utah. Officials said he fled the scene after assassinating Kirk, 31, at Utah Valley University by jumping from a rooftop. He then ran through a wooded area into a nearby neighborhood, abandoning the towel-wrapped firearm along the way, authorities said.
A disturbing note allegedly tied to Robinson was also recovered during the investigation, which federal agents said may point to his political motives and could implicate others in aiding or failing to report the attack.
Utah officials said Robinson had developed a strong leftist ideology before allegedly killing Kirk. Investigators recovered bullets inscribed with some messages consistent with left-wing criticisms of conservatives, including one message that appeared to refer to Kirk as a “fascist.”
Appearing on Fox News’s America’s Newsroom shortly after Patel, Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent who is the FBI’s deputy director, said agents are aggressively examining Robinson’s network.
“If this was a larger effort, [if] there was any aiding and abetting … whether it be someone who knew the specifics and failed to report that … we are looking into that,” Bongino said. “We have a lot of technical capabilities. … We’ll also be dropping a lot of paper, a lot of subpoenas out there to take a look to see if there was any extended network.”
Bongino said investigators are scouring Robinson’s online footprint and communications for clues about ideological motives and coordination. Several people close to the suspect had raised concerns prior to the shooting. Additionally, several online users appeared to have predicted the day of the shooting, according to posts reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon, though it is not confirmed whether any of these accounts were privy to any assassination plans.
“There were people in his network, friends and family, who had stated that he had become more political,” Bongino said. “Some of his coworkers had stated that he had kind of detached himself when the topic of politics came up … leading us to believe that this ideology had infected him and had taken over.”
Despite criticism over Patel’s premature social media post last week claiming a suspect was already in custody, a statement that was later walked back, Bongino defended the pace and outcome of the investigation.
TRUMP AND VANCE LEAD MOURNING AFTER CHARLIE KIRK KILLED IN UTAH
“You know what? It wasn’t perfect, but it should be,” he said. “We got our guy in 33 hours. … When everything settled down and I finally got a little bit of sleep last night, it hit me that Charlie’s not here anymore, and that was tough for everyone.”
Formal criminal charges are expected to be filed against Robinson by Tuesday. Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray said in a statement that he expects those charges to be “consistent” with the preliminary charges Robinson was arrested on, which included aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, and obstruction of justice.
