Hours after Charlie Kirk was fatally shot at Utah Valley University, authorities issued mixed messages about whether the suspect was in custody, and later clarified that they had no one locked up.
Kirk, 31, was shot during a public event at Utah Valley University on September 10. The shooting is believed to have been a targeted attack, with investigators citing that the fatal shot was fired from the roof of a nearby building.
Initially, reports circulated that someone had been detained for questioning, or that a “person of interest” was in custody.
Meanwhile, Governor Spencer Cox initially told a press conference that police were interviewing a 'person of interest,' while Beau Mason, the Utah Department of Public Safety commissioner, told the same press conference that the perpetrator, suspected of firing a single shot, remained at large
FBI Director Kash Patel said an unnamed person had been detained for questioning, then released. 'Our investigation continues,' he wrote on social media.
The Utah Department of Public Safety said the investigation continues in partnership with the FBI, the Utah County Attorney’s Office, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, and local police departments.
A manhunt is underway for the shooter.
What happened in Utah Valley University
Charlie Kirk, 31, conservative activist and co‑founder of Turning Point USA, was speaking outdoors at Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem, Utah on September 10, 2025. The event was part of his “American Comeback Tour,” with the slogan “Prove Me Wrong.” He was addressing a large crowd (estimated around 3,000 people) under a white tent with those slogans
At about 12:20 pm local time, a single shot rang out. Kirk was struck in the neck. Witnesses say there was an immediate panic among the crowd, people gasped, screamed, ducked, and fled.
Video and eyewitness accounts show significant bleeding, and Kirk fell from his chair. His security took him from the scene. He passed away later.
The death was announced on social media by Trump, who praised the 31-year-old Kirk, the co-founder and CEO of the youth organization Turning Point USA, as "Great, and even Legendary."
"No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie," Trump posted on his Truth Social account.
(With inputs from AP, AFP)
