Just a day after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, 22-year-old Utah man Tyler Robinson was taken into custody after 33 hours of a manhunt.
The suspected shooter now faces several charges, including aggravated murder and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child, as per Fox News.
As per a PBS report quoting a sheriff, Robinson feared being shot by police and agreed to surrender only if it was ‘gentle’.
“He didn’t want a big SWAT team at his parent’s house or his apartment,” Nate Brooksby, Washington County Sheriff, who was involved with the surrender, said during a press conference, as per reports. “He was truly fearful about being shot by law enforcement.”
Robinson had allegedly planned the attack in advance — “a little over one week’ before the tragic shooting that took Kirk’s life, as per ABC News. The bolt-action rifle that the suspect used belonged to his grandfather.
Utah Governor’s Office
Earlier, the FBI had also released photos of a young man wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses who was spotted on the stairwell of a building. Later, Robinson admitted to his roommate on Discord that it was he who killed Kirk, as per the charging documents.
A retired officer who is a friend of the family and was associated with the family by religion advised Robinson to surrender and turned him in.
“Tyler’s family trusted this individual. They knew he was involved in law enforcement. They trusted that they could go to this individual and he could contact me directly and we could facilitate a peaceful, calm and relaxed surrender,” Brooksby said.
As quoted by the Daily Mail, Brooksby also recalled the chilling call he had with his detective friend, who appeared to have a shaky voice during the call. “So my first thought is, “who died?”‘ The latter then told him that the suspect had been identified. The sheriff further quoted his friend saying, “Hey, I know who the Charlie Kirk shooter is. I know the family through religious association and he’s in Washington County now and we’re working on trying to get him to come in voluntarily.”
Robinson and his parents were then brought to Brooksby’s office, where he communicated with detectives in plain clothes.
The most shocking part that Brooksby revealed was that Tyler Robinson was having suicidal thoughts and that his parents talked him out of it. Later, Sheriff Mike Smith of Utah County was informed about the matter, and Robinson was finally arrested.
Cops also found Robinson’s DNA on the suspected murder weapon. They also found the towel used to wrap the weapon and a screwdriver from the roof where the shot was reportedly fired at the activist.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Robinson.