Kash Patel, a White House official whom the administration says is helping coordinate the federal response to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, remained silent at a Salt Lake City news conference Thursday as Utah officials released video and surveillance images and appealed to the public for help in the manhunt.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox showed footage of the shooting at Utah Valley University and urged citizens to provide tips. The Utah Department of Public Safety released surveillance images showing a man in a dark long-sleeved shirt with an American flag on the chest, a gray baseball cap and sunglasses, carrying a black backpack. Cox said investigators had received more than 7,000 tips and conducted more than 200 interviews since the attack, and he implored the public to assist with leads.
State officials released additional surveillance video that shows a man running across a building roof and then climbing down and jumping to the ground. Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason told NBC News investigators did not know whether the suspect remained in Utah or had left the state. "We have no idea," Mason said when asked whether the suspected shooter might still be nearby.
Patel, who attended the briefing but did not address reporters, has come under scrutiny in the hours since Kirk, 31, was fatally shot on campus. Social media users and some critics noted his silence at the public briefing even as federal and state investigators appealed for information and released images of a person of interest.
Reporting by The New York Times said Patel had been vocally critical during an earlier internal conference call, describing the search as a "Mickey Mouse operation" and chastising staff for not providing up-to-date information. Reuters reported that a White House official, speaking on background, described Patel's conduct on the call as unprofessional and said the matter would be addressed internally. The White House pushed back on that reporting. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Reuters the story was "despicable" and said Patel had the backing of President Joe Biden's predecessor and others in the administration working on the case, while urging unity as authorities hunted a suspect.
In the hours after the shooting, Patel had told some that a suspect was in custody; that assertion later proved incorrect, according to media accounts. Critics have also pointed to recent personnel moves at the FBI's Salt Lake City office, saying those changes may have affected the local response.
Mehtab Syed, who had been named special agent in charge in Salt Lake City in February, was removed from that post in August, according to reporting by NBC News and comments from former colleagues. Former FBI agent Christopher O'Leary, now an MSNBC national security contributor, described Syed as "truly a humble servant leader" and praised her record in counterterrorism and cyberterrorism roles. Sources told NBC that Syed was offered a lower-level position in Huntsville, Alabama, and elected to retire rather than accept the reassignment after a distinguished career.
Authorities have asked anyone who recognizes the clothing or cap shown in the images, or who has other information about the shooting, to contact law enforcement. Utah officials said they had received thousands of tips but had not yet located the person of interest nearly 36 hours after the attack.
The investigation remains active and ongoing. State and federal law enforcement agencies have appealed for the public’s help and said they will continue to follow leads, interview witnesses and review surveillance footage as they work to identify and apprehend the suspect.