Washington – US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that authorities have taken into custody the prime suspect in the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, following a large-scale manhunt.
Speaking to Fox News in a live interview, Trump said, “I can say with a very high degree of certainty that we have him. Somebody very close to him turned him in.” He added that a minister with ties to law enforcement helped facilitate the handover.
Kirk, a staunch Trump ally and co-founder of the nonprofit political group Turning Point USA, was shot dead on Wednesday while delivering a speech at Utah Valley University in Orem. Utah’s governor described the shooting as a “political assassination.”
Authorities revealed that the attacker used a high-powered bolt-action rifle before fleeing the scene by jumping off a roof and disappearing into nearby woods. Federal investigators and state police had released photographs and surveillance footage of the suspect on Thursday, appealing for public assistance.
The suspect, described as a college-aged male, was last seen wearing a black long-sleeved T-shirt with the American flag, dark sunglasses, Converse trainers, and a baseball cap.
Kirk’s murder has sent shockwaves across the country, especially within conservative political circles, where he was a prominent figure and outspoken advocate of right-wing causes.
