Charlie Kirk had just kicked off Turning Point USA’s fall tour, debating with college students at campuses across the country, when 20 minutes into the Utah event, the right-wing activist was struck in the neck by a single bullet.
Chaos erupted as panicked students fled the courtyard of the Utah Valley University campus as Kirk, with blood pouring from his neck, fell to the ground from his chair.
The FBI was on the scene within 16 minutes and a manhunt was launched.
Confusion set in after a university alert initially claimed the suspect was in custody, only for Utah officials to contradict the report soon after and clarify that the shooter was still at large.
President Donald Trump announced Kirk’s death two hours after the MAGA influencer was shot.
Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspected of assassinating the 31-year-old, was arrested two days later after law enforcement was tipped off by his own family.
Here, The Independent looks at key moments surrounding the shooting. All times are local.
Wednesday, September 10
11:52 a.m. The suspected shooter arrives on campus, according to Beau Mason, the commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, who spoke at a Wednesday news conference following Kirk’s death.
Noon: Kirk begins his event in the Fountain Courtyard of Utah Valley University’s Orem Campus, to a crowd of around 3,000 students.
12:20 p.m. Mathematics student Hunter Kozak, 29, is invited to ask Kirk a question during the debate portion of the event.
“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?” Kozak asks.
“Too many,” Kirk responds to applause from the crowd.
Kozak informs Kirk that the total was five and continues: “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”
“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk replies.
Seconds later, Kirk is struck in the neck by a single bullet and falls from his chair. Authorities later say they believe the gunshot came from the roof of the Losee Center, less than 200 yards from where Kirk was speaking.
Stunned spectators begin screaming as people run away in a panic.
12:23 p.m. A Utah Valley University police officer states, “Alpha 34, we have shots fired. Charlie Kirk is down,” according to a broadcast recording from the department’s dispatch line. Shortly after, a different officer notes that there was gunfire and that Kirk is “on his way to the ambulance. He’s on his way to the hospital.”
12:39 p.m. FBI agents arrive on the scene, according to FBI Director Kash Patel. Graphic videos of the moment Kirk is shot begin to circulate on social media around this time.
12:47 p.m. Utah Valley University issues an alert that says a “single shot” was fired and that the suspect is in custody.
2:40 p.m. President Donald Trump announces on social media that Kirk has died. “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” Trump said on Truth Social. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
2:45 p.m. Orem Mayor David Young says the suspected shooter remains at large, contrary to information put out earlier.
4:21 p.m. Patel announces on social media that “the subject for the horrific shooting today that took the life of Charlie Kirk is now in custody.”
5:59 p.m. Patel, reportedly while dining at exclusive New York City hotspot Rao’s, per NBC News, sends an update on X: “The subject in custody has been released after an interrogation by law enforcement. Our investigation continues and we will continue to release information in interest of transparency.”
Thursday, September 11
9:58 a.m. The FBI releases the first images of a “person of interest” in grainy surveillance pictures of a man wearing all black, a baseball cap and sunglasses.
Noon The Utah Department of Public Safety postpones a press conference citing “rapid developments” in the investigation.
6 p.m. Kirk’s body arrives back in Phoenix, Arizona, after being escorted on Air Force Two by his widow, Erika Kirk, Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance.
7:30 p.m. Utah officials hold a short media briefing and plead for the public’s help in identifying the suspect.
The FBI releases clearer images of the suspect and new video footage of the alleged shooter climbing and then jumping from the roof of the university building, before making a getaway across a parking lot and into a wooded area.
“We need all the help we can get,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox tells the public.
Sometime during that evening, Tyler Robinson’s father recognizes his son in the images released by the FBI.
He reaches out to a family friend, later reported to be a youth pastor, who contacts authorities with information that Robinson had confessed or implied that he carried out the shooting, Cox later says.
10 p.m. Robinson is taken into custody.
Friday, September 12
6 a.m. Trump appears on Fox & Friends and says Kirk’s suspected killer is in custody.
8:05 a.m. Authorities announce that Robinson is in custody and was booked into Utah County Jail.
10:20 a.m. A probable cause statement outlines the evidence gathered against Robinson, who was arrested on suspicion of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a weapon causing serious bodily injury, and obstruction of justice.
All are state felony charges, and aggravated murder carries the possibility of the death penalty. Robinson’s first virtual court appearance is slated for September 16.
6:15 p.m. Kirk’s widow, Erika, speaks publicly for the first time since her husband’s killing and vows to continue his legacy through Turning Point USA.
Saturday, September 13
Trump praises Patel amid criticism over his handling of the manhunt.
“I am very proud of the FBI,” Trump told Fox News Digital. “Kash — and everyone else — they have done a great job.”
Tyler Robinson is reported to be on “special watch” at the Utah County Jail while officials determine if he is a risk to himself or others, CBS reported.
Meanwhile, around the same time, Turning Point USA releases details of Kirk’s memorial, to be held Sunday, September 21, in Glendale, Arizona.
Additional reporting by the Associated Press
