Charges News Conference in Charlie Kirk Case
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Charges against the suspect in the shooting of Charlie Kirk have been outlined at a news conference in Utah
Tyler Robinson, 22, faces seven charges, including aggravated murder and witness tampering – read them all here
Utah attorney Jeff Gray says he will seek the death penalty: "I do not take this decision lightly"
Gray also reveals that Robinson left a note under a keyboard for his transgender roommate, who he was in a relationship with, saying he had the "opportunity to take Kirk out"
In further messages to his roommate, Robinson said he "hoped to keep this secret" until he died of old age
Earlier, FBI director Kash Patel told a Senate committee that "a lot more" than 20 people in Robinson's online chat would be questioned
Robinson will make his first appearance in a Utah court about 15:00 local time (17:00 ET / 22:00 BST) – you'll be able to watch live here
Edited by Caitlin Wilson and Tinshui Yeung in Washington DC with Kayla Epstein in Utah
Tyler Robinson, 22, has been charged with seven offences over the murder of Charlie Kirk.
Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray outlined a long list of allegations and evidence that will be used in the case, and says he will seek the death penalty.
Here’s what we know:
The charges: aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, two counts of obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and committing a violent crime when children are present.
Text messages: Gray read out texts between Robinson and his roommate, a transgender male with whom Robinson was in a romantic relationship. The messages Robinson sent allegedly say he shot Kirk because he "had enough of his hatred". The messages also detail his attempts to recover the rifle he hid, and instruct the roommate to delete the exchange.
A hidden note: Robinson allegedly left a note under his keyboard for his roommate, saying "I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I'm going to take it".
The sniper nest: A university officer searched the rooftops after hearing a gunshot and found marks in the gravel suggesting a sniper had been camped, with a direct line of sight to where Kirk was shot.
The video: Robinson's mother saw a video of a suspect and told her husband it looked like their son. The father then confronted Robinson. Gray said video also showed the suspect walking with a stiff leg at the university, suggesting a rifle was hidden in his trousers.
The gun: Gray says the weapon used was unique and had been given to Robinson. It once belonged to his grandfather. Robinson's father asked to see a photo of the gun when he became suspicious, but Robinson did not send one.
As journalists fire questions at Gray, he mostly declines to comment and refers back to his earlier statement.
Reporters ask about the suspect's time online, whether he's co-operating with authorities, if the suspect was motivated by transgender rights, and for more details about his family – but after a few "no comment" responses, prosecutors wrap up the news conference.
Gray alleges that Robinson and his partner had also spoken in messages about his plans to leave town after the shooting, and his concerns over losing his rifle and how he would have to explain that to his father.
"Going to attempt to retrieve it again," Robinson allegedly said in the messages.
"I'm worried what my old man would do if I don't bring back grandpa's rifle." Gray also says that Robinson allegedly said the etches on the rounds "are mostly a big meme".
The suspect then told his roommate to delete the messages.
Robinson also sheds light on the political leanings of his family. "Since Trump got into office, my dad has been pretty diehard MAGA," Robinson said in messages, according to Gray.
Robinson then said in messages that he would turn himself in, before asking his roommate not to speak to the media and to ask for a lawyer.
Kayla Epstein
Reporting from Provo, Utah
Gray is giving a lot of detail about the frantic hours between the shooting and Robinson handing himself in.
The texts and statements Gray reads show how people in Robinson's life seemed caught off guard by his alleged actions.
We heard more about how Robinson's parents came to suspect their son's involvement in the shooting, and eventually persuaded him to hand himself in with help from a family friend.
We also heard text messages between Robinson and his roommate.
Gray read an alleged text exchange between Robinson and his roommate, who authorities say identifies as transgender and was in a romantic relationship with Robinson.
The alleged texts state that Robinson asked the roommate to check under a keyboard for a note.
"The roommate looked under the keyboard and found a note that stated quote, 'I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I'm going to take it,'" Gray said.
According to Gray, the roommate then responded, "What you're joking, right?"
The texts continued as Robinson explained he had had "enough of his [Kirk's] hatred" and asked the roommate to delete text exchanges and not talk about his alleged actions.
Gray is now taking questions.
He takes a question from a reporter who asks if anyone knew about the shooting in advance.
He says it's an active investigation and there's no information about additional suspects right now.
Law enforcement will follow leads, he says.
Earlier, when asked if other people could have been involved in the murder, FBI Director Kash Patel replied: "Yes, sir".
Gray reminds everyone that the accused is innocent until proven guilty – and that will be for a jury to decide.
Jeff Gray is now reading out messages between Robinson and his roommate, who provided the texts to the police.
The pair were in a romantic relationship, Gray says, and the roommate is a biological male who is undergoing a gender transition.
Robinson sent a message to his roommate saying "Drop what you're doing, look under my keyboard."
Under the keyboard there was a note from Robinson which said: "I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I'm going to take it."
The roommate responded by saying: "What? You're joking."
Gray reads out messages between the pair, as Robinson attempts to evade police and gives the roommate updates about his movement.
At one point Robinson allegedly texted, referring to Kirk: "I've had enough of his hatred. Some hate can't be negotiated out."
Robinson also wrote: "To be honest I had hoped to keep this secret till I died of old age. I am sorry to involve you."
The roommate replied: "you weren't the one who did it right????"
Robinson replied: "I am, I'm sorry."
The roommate said: "I thought they caught the person?"
Robinson replied: "no, they grabbed some crazy old dude, then interrogated someone in similar clothing".
Asked why he did it, Tyler Robinson allegedly said there was too much evil and that Charlie Kirk spread too much hate.
Robinson was persuaded to turn himself in after speaking with a family friend, a retired law enforcement officer.
The friend advised him to bring all evidence to the police station.
Robinson allegedly said he had disposed of clothes in different areas.
Robinson's father recalled a conversation where his son talked about Kirk coming to Utah Valley University, according to Jeff Gray.
Robinson reportedly said the school was a "stupid venue" for the event and accused Kirk of spreading hate.
Robinson's father also thought the rifle in the surveillance photos looked like a gun that had been given to his son.
He texted Robinson, asking him to send a photo of the gun, but Robinson didn't respond.
The father then called Robinson, who suggested he would kill himself, but was eventually persuaded to come to his parents' house.
While there, Robinson hinted that he was the attacker and said he wanted to "end it" rather than go to jail.
Jeff Gray is now speaking about the evening of 11 September, in the hours before Robinson handed himself in.
The attorney says Robinson's mother saw footage of the suspected killer on the news and thought it looked like her son.
She then called her son, who said he was at home sick and had been the day before as well, Gray says.
She told Robinson's father that it looked like their son, and he agreed, the attorney adds.
She said that recently her son had become more political and left-leaning over gay and trans rights, and had been dating his roommate who was transitioning genders, Gray says.
This started conversations with his family, including his father who had different political views, he adds.
The wooded area mentioned in the last post is where investigators found a bolt action rifle wrapped in a towel, attorney Jeff Gray says.
It contained three unused rounds and one used one. No shell casings were found on the roof, he notes.
Gray also describes the etchings found on each round of the rifle.
One was etched with: "Notices bulge, OwO What's This?"
A second was etched with: "Hey facist! Catch!"
The third: "Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao ciao ciao."
And the fourth: "If you read this, you are gay lmao."
Gray says the towel was sent for forensic processing, and DNA consistent with Robinson was found on the shell casings and the towel.
He adds that police were unable to immediately locate the suspect, so they released images asking the public for help.
Gray says that after the suspect was seen on surveillance footage, investigators checked other footage from the same day.
They found the suspect entered campus at around 11:51 local time (13:51 ET, 17:51 GMT), wearing a black shirt with an American flag in the centre, a baseball cap and sunglasses.
The suspect rarely looked up and kept his head down, face hidden.
Investigators noticed he was walking with an unusual gait and very little bending in his right leg – consistent with a rifle being hidden in his trousers.
After the shot was fired, a surveillance camera captured someone leaving the roof with an item that looks like a rifle.
The person on the tape dropped the rifle as he leapt from the roof, then picked it up again and headed off the campus towards a wooded area.
Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray says a university officer scanned the rooftops for snipers after hearing the gunshot.
He says the officer rushed to a rooftop area about 160 yards (146m) away.
There, he saw a clear line of sight to where Kirk was shot.
On the ground were markings in the gravel on the roof that could have been where an attacker's arms and legs were, if they were in a prone position.
Gray continues to recount the events of last Wednesday.
Kirk was answering a question about mass shootings carried out by transgender individuals when the gunshot rang out, he says.
The bullet struck Kirk in the neck and he immediately slumped to the ground.
The bullet passed closely by other people, including nearby children and the person who asked Kirk the question.
Kirk was rushed to hospital and declared dead.
A medical examiner’s report is still pending.
Gray then goes through how police found the suspected weapon – a rifle – nearby, and launched a 33-hour manhunt that ended with Robinson surrendering to police.
DNA consistent with Robinson was found on the rifle's trigger, he says.
He adds that Robinson told his roommate to "delete incriminating messages" and not to talk to police.
He then explains how each of Robinson's actions has resulted in each of the charges he is facing.
Here’s a timeline for your reference on what Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray has just said about what happened on 10 September.
The following times are approximates.
08:29 local time (14:29 GMT): Tyler Robinson arrives at the university in a Dodge Challenger vehicle.
12:10: Charlie Kirk appears and sits under a white pop-up tent to take questions from a crowd of about 3,000 in the university's quad – an outdoor courtyard.
12:20: He is asked by a member of the crowd: "Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?"
He replies: "Too many."
The questioner then states there had been five in 10 years and asks Kirk how many mass shootings there had been in that time.
"Counting or not counting gang violence?" Kirk replies.
Then a single shot is heard, which is believed to have been fired from the roof of the Losee Center, a building overlooking the quad.
Gray is now going through the events of 10 September.
He says the event was organised through Kirk's Turning Point USA organisation.
Kirk spoke with the crowd before the event, then sat under a tent and began taking questions from the audience, Gray says.
His team members were nearby, with a large crowd surrounding on three sides, the attorney says.
He then started taking questions.Kayla Epstein
Reporting from Provo, Utah
Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray has announced more charges than expected, bringing the total to seven counts.
Surrounded by about 20 people from the prosecutor's office and the local sheriff's office, Gray made the sombre announcement that his office intends to seek the death penalty in this case.
Prosecutors were expected to charge Robinson with aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, and obstruction of justice. Those charges have now been confirmed.
But today, Gray also said Robinson will face two counts of witness tampering, linked to alleged instructions to his roommate to delete text messages and not talk to police if questioned.
The prosecutor also announced an extra charge – commission of violence in the presence of a child.
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Watch: Utah County Attorney to seek death penalty against Tyler Robinson
As reported, Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray says prosecutors will seek the death penalty.
"I do not take this decision lightly," Gray says.
Robinson will continue to be held without bail in the county jail, Gray says.
Tyler Robinson, 22, is being charged with:
Utah attorney Jeff Gray says he will seek the death penalty.
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