Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed on the campus of Utah Valley University. The ammunition used in the attack bore engravings related to transgender and antifascist ideology, writes the report. The suspect, described as being of student age, remains at large. The FBI and local authorities are reviewing video footage and physical evidence, including handprints and shoe impressions, in an effort to apprehend him.
We are asking for the public's help identifying this person of interest in connection with the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University.
1-800-CALL-FBI
Digital media tips: https://t.co/K7maX81TjJ pic.twitter.com/ALuVkTXuDc— FBI Salt Lake City (@FBISaltLakeCity) September 11, 2025
Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, during a speech on the Utah Valley University campus in Orem. The incident occurred at approximately 12:20 p.m., when a single sniper rifle shot struck Kirk in the neck as he was answering a question about shootings involving transgender individuals. Kirk was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The FBI and the Utah Department of Public Safety (DPS) are conducting an intensive manhunt for the perpetrator, described as a student-aged individual who “blended in” with the crowd. According to DPS Commissioner Beau Mason, the suspect arrived on campus at 11:52 a.m., ascended stairwells to the rooftop of a building, fired the fatal shot, then escaped by jumping from the roof and fleeing toward a nearby residential neighbourhood. Investigators recovered a high-powered bolt-action rifle abandoned in a wooded area, along with handprints, forearm impressions, and shoeprints now under forensic analysis.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the ammunition found in the rifle bore engravings linked to transgender and antifascist ideology, which may indicate a motive for the attack. The FBI declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation. Campus security footage capturing the suspect’s movements is currently under review. Mason emphasised that investigators do not know how far the suspect may have gotten.
Authorities have appealed to local residents to provide footage from doorbell cameras as well as any information that could help identify the perpetrator. Social media videos show a person running across the rooftop from which the shot was fired, but officials have stated they will not release images of the suspect unless deemed necessary.
BREAKING: The FBI has released new video showing Charlie Kirk’s suspected assassin running along the roof at Utah Valley University and jumping down to the ground, where he then walks towards a wooded area where police later found the bolt-action rifle he used. pic.twitter.com/TiRpLwZ4wN
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) September 12, 2025
Two individuals initially detained, a senior man accused of obstructing campus police operations and another man considered a “person of interest”, were released after questioning. The DPS confirmed they had no involvement in the attack.
President Donald Trump, during a ceremony commemorating the September 11th attacks, described Kirk’s killing as a “heinous assassination” and announced that Kirk will be posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Kirk is survived by his wife, Erika Lane Kirk, and their two young children. The investigation remains ongoing, with authorities classifying the attack as deliberate.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 11, 2025
