The suspected shooter of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is still at large following his assassination on Wednesday at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
FBI Director Kash Patel early Wednesday evening said a “subject” was in custody, but later said that the person had been released and the suspect is still at large.
“The subject in custody has been released after an interrogation by law enforcement,” Patel said in a post on X made at 8 p.m. EDT.
“Our investigation continues, and we will continue to release information in [the] interest of transparency.”
Kirk, 31, was initially reported to be in critical condition after being removed from the stage area by his security team while bleeding from his neck. Soon after, though, President Donald Trump announced he had died from his wounds.
The suspect was dressed in black and allegedly shot Kirk from the rooftop of a university building about 200 yards from the outdoor event where Kirk was speaking.
Another suspect was initially arrested but was booked on an obstruction charge after police determined he did not match the description of the suspected shooter, whose image was recorded by university security cameras.
Police said there was only one shooter involved in the assassination.
Was asked about mass shootings
About 3,000 people attended the event, and Kirk was responding to a question about mass shootings when a single shot was heard at about 12:20 p.m. MST, Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason told reporters during a late-afternoon news conference.
Kirk placed his right hand on his neck as he fell. He was picked up by his private security team, which took him to Intermountain Health Utah Valley Hospital, which is located near the university.
He was pronounced dead soon after.
The university is located about 40 miles south of Salt Lake City and is the state’s largest in terms of student enrollment.
University officials told students to shelter in place immediately after the shooting occurred.
Kirk and President Donald Trump speaking with attendees at a Turning Point Action Conference in 2023
‘Political assassination’
“This is a dark day for our state. It’s a tragic day for our nation,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox told reporters during the afternoon news conference. “This is a political assassination.”
Cox, a Republican, said he has talked with Trump and Patel and noted that the nation is celebrating its 250th birthday this year.
“Life is the first inalienable right,” Cox said. “Charlie Kirk was first and foremost a husband and a dad to two young children.
“He was also very much politically involved, and that’s why he was here on campus,” Cox continued.
“He believed in free speech and debate to shape ideas and persuade people.”
Cox called Kirk’s assassination motivated by his “ideas and ideals” a threat to the nation’s constitutional foundation and called on those who might celebrate his death to appeal to their “better angels.”
He told reporters that Utah has the death penalty and will hold the person responsible to the “fullest extent of the law.”
“Our nation is broken,” Cox said, and cited politically motivated attacks in Minnesota, an attempt on the life of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and the assassination attempts on Trump as proof.
“I don’t care what his politics are,” Cox said of Kirk. “I care that he is an American.”
Utah Valley University Police Chief Jeffrey Long said the university has a small police department and more than 40,000 enrolled students.
About six uniformed university police officers were at the event, plus others in plainclothes among the crowd, he told reporters.
Long said Kirk’s security team traveled with him and had coordinated with university police to provide event security.
White House flags at half-staff
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called Kirk’s assassination “utterly devastating” in a prepared statement.
“Charlie was a close friend and confidant,” Johnson said. “He will be sorely missed by so many. Every political leader must loudly and clearly decry this violence.”
He offered prayers for Kirk’s wife and two young children and concluded his statement with, “May he rest in peace.”
Kirk’s assassination prompted Trump to order flags flown at half-staff “as a mark of respect for the memory of Charlie Kirk,” he said in a news release shared with UPI.
The order applies to all flags flown at the White House and upon public buildings and grounds, at military posts and naval stations, on naval vessels of the federal government in Washington, D.C., and throughout the United States, its territories and possessions until sunset on Sunday.
The order also applies to all U.S. embassies, legations, consular offices and other facilities abroad, including military facilities, naval vessels and stations.
Kirk was a co-founder of Turning Point USA, which is a conservative nonprofit that promotes conservative causes and viewpoints at colleges, universities and elsewhere and supports Trump.
Trump called Kirk a “great guy from top to bottom” in an earlier Truth Social post, which he concluded with, “God bless him!”
Kirk spoke during the 2024 Republican Convention in Milwaukee shortly after a would-be assassin tried to shoot and kill Trump.
(UPI)