Law enforcement in Utah continued a manhunt into a second day on Thursday after Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot during an appearance at Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem. Authorities said no suspects were in custody and that investigators had recovered what they believe is the weapon used in the shooting.
Beau Mason, commissioner of the Utah Department of Public Safety, outlined a timeline at a Thursday morning press conference, saying the suspected shooter arrived near the UVU campus just before noon on Wednesday. Mason said investigators tracked the person taking stairwells up to a campus roof before fleeing into a nearby neighborhood. Mason said authorities have "good video footage" of the suspect but will not release it at this time as the investigation continues.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls said investigators have recovered a high-powered rifle in a wooded area near where the shooter fled and are analyzing a footprint and a forearm imprint recovered at the scene. Bohls said the rifle is believed to be the weapon used to kill Kirk. He did not provide further detail on the make of the weapon or where exactly it was found.
Authorities said they have received about 130 tips to the FBI since the shooting and are working with neighborhood residents to access doorbell camera footage to help identify the suspect. Two people were detained Wednesday evening and later released, the Utah Department of Public Safety said. FBI Director Kash Patel said on X that a person taken into custody earlier had been released after interrogation and that the investigation was ongoing.
The shooting occurred roughly 20 minutes after Kirk had begun speaking to an audience of about 3,000 people at UVU, according to officials and attendees. The university initially said a suspect had been detained, but later informed The New York Times that authorities had determined that person was not the shooter.
Investigators described an active, multiagency effort involving local, state and federal personnel. "We will not stand for what happened yesterday. We are exhausting every lead we have, every officer invested in this. Every investigator, every local agency," Mason said at the press conference.
The FBI posted on X Wednesday night that it was "working alongside our local and state law enforcement partners in Utah to fully investigate and seek justice" and asked anyone with information, photos or video from the incident to come forward. Bohls said forensic teams are analyzing the recovered physical evidence and video clips, but did not provide a timeline for when results might be available.
Investigators have not identified a motive for the killing. The shooting has prompted widespread condemnation across the political spectrum and renewed concerns about political violence in the United States. Some conservative figures, including former President Donald Trump, who has been publicly allied with Kirk, sought to attribute responsibility to political opponents on social media, despite officials saying no suspect has been identified.
Police said the investigation remains fluid and that they are pursuing both physical and digital leads. Authorities have asked local residents to check and share any security or doorbell camera footage from the campus area and nearby neighborhoods between late morning and early afternoon on Wednesday.
As investigators continue to comb through evidence and tips, state and federal officials said they would release additional information as it becomes verified. For now, law enforcement emphasized that identifying and locating the person or persons responsible remains their highest priority and that significant resources are being devoted to that effort.